Question

Teams red and blue are having a tug-of-war. According to Newton’s third law, the force with which the red team pulls on the blue team exactly equals the force with which the blue team pulls on the red team. How can one team ever win? Explain

Short answer

One team can win if it applies more force than the other can.

Step-by-step solution

Given information

Teams red and blue are having a tug-of-war and the force with which the red team pulls on the blue team exactly equals the force with which the blue team pulls on the red team. This is in accordance with the third law of motion.

Explanation

In a tug of war when the teams pull they actually lean back and push the ground with their feet while pulling the rope. The action is pushing the ground while the reaction is the ground pushing the teams back. This reaction force helps team to win the game .

Final answer

Both the team will try to create force on the rope by pushing the ground . The team which becomes able to push the ground with greater force will be able to win the game. The balance of force will be disturbed in favor of winning team.