You're driving down the highway late one night

Odwa Benya

Odwa Benya

Answered question

2022-08-08

You're driving down the highway late one night at 20 m/sm/s when a deer steps onto the road 58 mm in front of you. Your reaction time before stepping on the brakes is 0.50 ss, and the maximum deceleration of your car is 10 m/s2m/s2.

Answer & Explanation

fudzisako

fudzisako

Skilled2023-06-01Added 105 answers

To solve this problem, we can calculate the distance traveled by the car during the reaction time and determine if there is enough distance to stop the car safely.
Let's denote:
- Initial velocity of the car = v0 = 20 m/s
- Distance between the car and the deer = d = 58 m
- Reaction time = treact = 0.50 s
- Maximum deceleration of the car = amax = 10 m/s²
First, let's calculate the distance traveled by the car during the reaction time. This distance can be calculated using the formula:
dreact=v0·treact
Substituting the given values, we have:
dreact=20m/s·0.50s=10m
Next, let's calculate the minimum stopping distance required to avoid hitting the deer. The stopping distance can be calculated using the equation:
dstop=v022·amax
Substituting the given values, we have:
dstop=(20m/s)22·10m/s2=20m
Now, we can compare the distance traveled during the reaction time with the stopping distance. If the distance traveled during the reaction time is less than the stopping distance, then the car can stop in time to avoid hitting the deer. Otherwise, a collision would occur.
In this case, dreact=10m, which is less than dstop=20m. Therefore, the car can stop in time to avoid hitting the deer.
Hence, given the initial conditions and the maximum deceleration of the car, the car can stop in time to avoid a collision with the deer.

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