CAIE M1 2015 November — Question 5

Exam BoardCAIE
ModuleM1 (Mechanics 1)
Year2015
SessionNovember
TopicVariable Force

5 A cyclist and his bicycle have a total mass of 90 kg . The cyclist starts to move with speed \(3 \mathrm {~m} \mathrm {~s} ^ { - 1 }\) from the top of a straight hill, of length 500 m , which is inclined at an angle of \(\sin ^ { - 1 } 0.05\) to the horizontal. The cyclist moves with constant acceleration until he reaches the bottom of the hill with speed \(5 \mathrm {~m} \mathrm {~s} ^ { - 1 }\). The cyclist generates 420 W of power while moving down the hill. The resistance to the motion of the cyclist and his bicycle, \(R \mathrm {~N}\), and the cyclist's speed, \(v \mathrm {~m} \mathrm {~s} ^ { - 1 }\), both vary.
  1. Show that \(R = \frac { 420 } { v } + 43.56\).
  2. Find the cyclist's speed at the mid-point of the hill. Hence find the decrease in the value of \(R\) when the cyclist moves from the top of the hill to the mid-point of the hill, and when the cyclist moves from the mid-point of the hill to the bottom of the hill.