university phy1

Question

Two men decide to use their cars to pull a truck stuck in mud. They attach ropes and one pulls with a force of 712 N at an angle of 32◦ with respect to the direction in which the truck is headed, while the other car pulls with a force of 1075 N at an angle of 25◦ with respect to the same directionWhat is the net forward force exerted on the truck in the direction it is headed? Answer in units of N.

Answer 1

In general, the component of a force F in a direction at an angle α is

Fcos(α).

So the two men exert force in the direction the truck is headed of magnitude

712×cos(32°) + 1075×cos(25°) = 1578.1 N