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A child of mass 5 kg is going round a merry-go-round that makes 1 rotation in 3.14 s. The radius of the merry-go-round is 2 m. The centrifugal force on the child will be

Asked in JEE Main 6th April 1st Shift 2023 · Centripetal force and uniform circular motion

Answer: (3) 40 N

Step-by-step solution

Idea: F=mω²r, and the period is chosen so that ω is a whole number.

ω=(2π)/T=(2π)/(3.14)≈2 rad/s, since 3.14≈π.

F=mω²r=5×4×2=40 N.

The 3.14 is there precisely so that ω=2 exactly; spotting that saves all the arithmetic.

'Centrifugal' here means the outward force felt in the child's own rotating frame; its magnitude is the same mω²r as the centripetal force an observer on the ground would measure.

Why the other options are wrong

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