Why do gymnasts use floor mats that are very thick? 

 Why does a baseball catcher’s mitt have more padding than a conventional glove? 

You have a friend who says that after a golf ball collides with a bowling ball at rest, although the speed gained by the bowling ball is very small, its momentum exceeds the initial momentum of the golf ball. Your friend further asserts this is related to the “negative” momentum of the golf ball after collision. Another friend says this is hogwash-that momentum conservation would be violated. Which friend do you agree with? 

 Explain how “elastic potential energy” dramatically changed the sport of pole vaulting when flexible fiberglass poles replaced stiffer wooden poles. 

 Suppose that you and two classmates are discussing the design of a roller coaster. One classmate says that each summit must be lower than the previous one. Your other classmate says this is nonsense, for as long as the first one is the highest, it doesn’t matter what height the others are. What do you say? 

 An inefficient machine is said to “waste energy.” Does this mean that energy is actually lost? Explain. 

Please answer each question in at least 500 words