Question

According to Newton’s third law, each team in a tug of war (Fig. 4–37) pulls with the force equal to that of the other team. What determines which team will win? Describe the forces on each of the teams and on the rope.

FIGURE 4-37 Question 14. A tug of war

Short answer

The team that pushes the hardest against the ground will win.

Step-by-step solution

Step 1. Meaning of frictional force

The frictional force can be described as the kind of force that resists the movement of an object.

The direction of this force is opposite to the direction of the object's movement, and its magnitude depends on the normal force working on an object.

Step 2. Application of Newton’s third law

As the value of the tension in the rope is the same for both teams, it's the force of friction on their feet that wins the tug of war. For the team that pushes forward on the ground with the greatest force, the ground pushes back and leads them away from their initial point in the right direction and leads the opposite team towards the centerline.