A student of mass 60kg first stands barefoot on one foot on a rigid floor and later stands on a pair of snowshoes on soft snow. The area of the sole of one bare foot in contact with the ground is 200cm2, while the area of the base of one snowshoe in contact with the snow is 0.15m2. Take g=9.8ms−2.
(i) Calculate the pressure exerted on the floor when the student stands on one bare foot.
(ii) Calculate the pressure exerted on the snow when the student stands on both snowshoes.
(iii) Which of the two situations is less likely to cause sinking and why?
(iv) If the maximum pressure the snow can withstand without giving way is 3.5kPa, decide whether the student will sink (a) without snowshoes and (b) with snowshoes. Show your working.