A scooter moving with a uniform velocity of 12m/s passes a lamp-post. Two seconds later the rider suddenly sees an obstacle 36m ahead and immediately applies the brakes, producing a uniform retardation that brings the scooter to rest just in front of the obstacle.
(i) Calculate the distance travelled by the scooter during the 2s before the brakes are applied.
(ii) Using the total distance available after the brakes are applied, determine the magnitude of the retardation.
(iii) Find the time taken to come to rest after the brakes are applied.
(iv) Explain whether the scooter would have hit the obstacle if the rider had taken 3s instead of 2s to react. Support your answer with calculations.