A physics student runs along a line tangent to the edge of a motionless merry-go-round and jumps on at the very outside. The merry-go-round has the shape of a uniform disk.

(a) Make an angular momentum chart to help you keep track of what is and is not changing. Consider the two objects, the student and merry-go-round, with the total angular momentum of these two objects conserved. Must the student have angular momentum before jumping on the merry-go-round?

(b) Is linear momentum conserved in this interaction if you just consider the merry-go-round and the student

Answer rating: 100% (QA)

a The initial angular momentum of the student is L t mvr ... View the full answer