An Astronaut Measures Her Mass by Means of a Device

question 45

Multiple Choice

An astronaut measures her mass by means of a device consisting of a chair attached to a large spring.The period of oscillation she undergoes when set into motion is used to determine her mass.If the spring constant is 1250 N/m and 27 seconds is required for her to undergo 10 full oscillations what is the mass of the astronaut and chair?

• A) 231 kg
• B) 537 kg
• C) 85.5 kg
• D) 171 kg

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Definitions:

Independent Populations

Populations that are distinct with no members in common, ensuring that the selection from one does not influence the selection from another.

Population Variances

A statistical measure representing the dispersion or variability of a population data set's values.

Equal-variances Test

A statistical method used to assess whether two or more populations have equal variances.

Student T-distributed

A probability distribution used in statistics when the sample size is small and the population standard deviation is unknown.