Question

According to Newton's third law each team pulls the opposite team with equal force in a game of tug of war. Why then does one team win and the other lose?

• A. If team 1 is winning, it is because team 1 is applying a greater force on the rope
• B. The losing team applies a greater force on the ground
• C. The losing team is applying a greater force on the rope
• D. None of these

Answer 1

The correct option is D

None of these

$F_1$ is the force that the ground applies on team 1 and is equal in magnitude to the force that team 1 applies on the ground similarly $F_2$is the force that the ground applies on team 2.

Let us assume, team 1 is winning, for that to happen, $F_1$ should be greater than T and T should be greater than $F_2$.

$\therefore F_1$ should be greater than $F_2$ or in other words, the force that team 1 applies on the ground should be greater in magnitude than the force that team 2 applies on the ground.