Question

A passenger in a moving bus is thrown forward when the bus is suddenly stopped. This is explained

• A. by Newtons first law
• B. by Newtons second law
• C. by Newtons third law
• D. by the principle of conservation of momentum

Answer 1

Answer: (A)

by Newtons first law

Answer 2

When a bus is moving, the passenger inside it is also moving at the same speed as the bus. This is due to inertia of motion. When the bus suddenly stops, the lower part of the passenger's body (in contact with the seat or floor) stops along with the bus due to friction and normal forces. However, the upper part of the passenger's body tends to continue its motion forward due to its inertia. Since there is no immediate external force to stop the upper part of the body, it keeps moving forward relative to the bus, causing the passenger to be thrown forward. This phenomenon is a direct application of Newton's First Law of Motion, also known as the Law of Inertia.