Diving Board Problem

for SCI 340 (Physics) Homework 10

When a 40-kg diver stands motionless on a diving board, her weight deflects it downward 10.0 cm from its unweighted position.  When she jumps and lands back on the board, it deflects downward 25.0 cm from its unweighted position.  Assume that the diving board is a spring following Hooke’s law.

1. Name the forces that act on the diver in both cases.
2. Draw free body diagrams for the diver for both cases showing the forces as vector arrows pointing away from the diver’s center of mass.
3. Give formulas for all the forces that act on the diver.  Use variables for the quantities in the formulas: don’t substitute in the quantities’ numerical values.  Identify each quantity in each formula.  (For example, “λ = wavelength of the sound waves emitted by the diving board.”)
4. What is the diver’s acceleration when the board is deflected downward 25.0 cm?  (Report both magnitude and direction.  Don’t forget the units!)