Physics Photo of the Week
MARCH 9, 2012
Bumper Can Crush - Discussion by Julian Dominic
In this experiment we wanted to see
what would happen when two large objects collide with each
other! Will a heavier group of men exert more force
upon that of a lesser mass when going head on? While
we tried to avoid using a large vehicles in this experiment
we settled with a small cart and three innocent bystanders;
Julian, Calder, and Maddy.
To find out which cart (uneven mass on each) was to exude the
most force upon the other we fixed on the front of both carts
a set of four cans. This way, the carnage of the destroyed
cans would tell us whose force (Julian and Calder’s or
Maddy’s) cart exuded the most force. It was expected that
Julian and Calder weighing in collectively at about 350
pounds will create more 
damage upon Maddy’s (weight of about
110)!
To find this out both carts were pushed towards each other by
two classmates - one for Maddy and one for the 350
pounders. What happened was astounding! And, as our
good friend Sir Isaac Newton states, for every action there
is an equal and opposite re-action. As for the 350 pounders,
their force, although their mass was greater, was equal to
the reaction force provided by the lesser mass! As a
result, the cans made an astounding reaction. As
you can tell in this image below, the carts were pushed
slightly to one 
side
thus only one can on each cart hadn’t collided. But, we can
tell that each can was crushed to smithereens equally!
A slow motion video is included so we can see the
reactions of the inhabitants of the two vehicles. The
passenger in the small vehicle suffers the most "damage",
but the bumpers are crushed equally.
Julian, Maddy, and Calder are students enrolled in Earth,
Light and Sky at Warren Wilson College.
Physics Photo of the Week is published weekly during the academic year on Fridays by the Warren Wilson College Physics Department. These photos feature interesting phenomena in the world around us. Students, faculty, and others are invited to submit digital (or film) photographs for publication and explanation. Atmospheric phenomena are especially welcome. Please send any photos to dcollins@warren-wilson.edu.
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