A 7 kg object undergoes an acceleration of 1.8 m/s^2.What is the magnitude of the resultant force acting on it? Answer in units of N. If this same...

This question is answered using Newton's Second Law

F = m a

where F is the applied force, m is the mass, and a is the acceleration. Using the mass and acceleration given in the question, we find that the force is

F = ( 7 kg ) ( 1.8 m/s^2 ) = 12.6 kg m/s^2

Now we can use that force and the second mass to find the acceleration

a = F / m = 12.6 kg m/s^2 / 4.4 kg = 2.86 m/s^2

Since the first mass is given to only one significant figure, our result must be expressed in the same manner, so the final answer is

a = 3 m/s^2