Scenario

Often times in movies you will see a character be hit by a bullet and thrown backwards. In this activity your task is to analyze that situation using what you have learned in the Newton's Third Law Unit.

Task 1: Organizing Background and Concepts

1. Make a list of properties of the situation that you will need to know in order to solve this problem. One such property is how fast would you need to be thrown backwards in order for it to be obvious that it was happening.

Research these, list them below, and include your source.

1. Make a diagram of the forces on the bullet and you in 2 different situations:
   1. When the bullet is being fired from the gun
   2. When the bullet is impacting you.

1. Discuss the forces.
   1. Which forces are the same magnitude (not direction) because they are action/reaction pairs?
   2. Which forces are the same magnitude (not direction) because they cause the same change in momentum?

Task 2: Determine your change in velocity when being impacted by a normal bullet.

Task 3: Determine the mass a bullet would need in order to sufficiently change your momentum to "throw you back".

Task 4: Discuss what would happen to the shooter if they shot a bullet capable of throwing you back.