How long will it take due to gravitational forces before you and your friend meet directly in the middle

College Physics
10th Edition
ISBN:9781285737027
Author:Raymond A. Serway, Chris Vuille
Publisher:Raymond A. Serway, Chris Vuille
Chapter4: The Laws Of Motion
Section4.3: Newton's Second Law
Problem 4.3QQ: Respond to each statement, true or false: (a) No force of gravity acts on an astronaut in an...
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You and you friend are sitting on the floor in an empty room a distance, d, apart, and you both have an equal mass. Assume the only force acting on you and your friend is the gravitational force you each exert on each other. No other forces are present. 

Question #1:

a. How long will it take due to gravitational forces before you and your friend meet directly in the middle? Note: You may assume the acceleration remains constant throughout the motion.

b. In reality, the acceleration is not constant and is continually changing. Why is this?

c. If the acceleration is changing, what effect will this have on the derived time? Will the time increase, decrease, or stay the same? Why?

 

BTW: This is a homework assignment and NOT a graded test. I follow the honor code. When I read over the questions, they seem really vague and I'm having trouble conceptualizing what they're asking. Thanks!

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