Investigate the movement of various masses.
Note how the reaction force is reduced when the masses begin
to move. The wedge is no longer "pushing against"
the mass with the same force as before, it is moving away
from it.
Calculate the accelerations for different
masses and angles. To check your results press the Answers
button.
Note1: In this applet the acceleration
of the wedge is a, the acceleration of the particle is f.
Note 2: The movement of the masses
is slowed down significantly in this applet. The real movement
is too quick to see what is happening.
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