A box of mass M sits on the floor of an elevator at rest.Gravity (which has a strength set by the local acceleration due togravity g) pulls the box and the floor pushes the box. The net ortotal force on the box is zero.
What is the force on the box from the floor? Give both themagnitude and the direction.
Now imagine that the elevator is accelerating upwards atacceleration a. Now the two forces on the box don’t balance!Because, after all, the box is accelerating upwards. What is theforce on the box from the floor in this case?
Now imagine that the elevator is accelerating downwards ataccelerationa. Same question.
Now imagine that the elevator is accelerating downwards ataccelerationa = g. Same question. Look up the “vomit comet” andtell me what this problem has to do with that airplane.
