Consider a 0.7 m high table and a spring that is fixed at one end resting on the table. The elastic constant of the spring is k = 1 N/m. A ball with a mass of 1.0 kg is pressed against the spring. The spring constant is compressed by an amount of delta x = 0.2 m. The ball is released suddenly and the spring fires it off the table. Neglect friction. Also, assume that the table is longer than the length of the spring when it is fully restored.
a. Compute the velocity of the ball at the instant in which the it leaves the spring.
b. Compute the velocity of the ball at the moment it hits the ground. Does the length traveled on the table matter? Why?