Arjun and Fatima drop two stones from a terrace at the same moment — one twice as heavy as the…
Arjun and Fatima drop two stones from a terrace at the same moment — one twice as heavy as the other, both roughly the same shape. Arjun says the heavier one must hit the ground first. Fatima says they will land together. Who is right?
Who do you think is right? Pick one.
The answer: Fatima is right
Why
Arjun has hold of something true: gravity really does pull harder on the heavier stone. What he misses is the second half. Heavier also means harder to get moving — twice the matter resists being sped up twice as much. The stronger pull and the greater resistance grow together and cancel exactly, so both stones gain speed at the same rate and land together. Test it with a capped full water bottle and an empty one dropped side by side from your terrace — same shape, very different weight, one thud. Fatima is right: weight raises the pull and the resistance equally, so all things fall alike — only air resistance breaks the tie, which is why a feather or a flat sheet of paper is different.
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