Question

how do airbags keep drivers and passengers safe in a collision? *
airbags lower the force of the impact.
airbags spread the impact over a larger area..
airbags lower the momentum of the driver and passengers.
all of the above.

Explanation:

According to the principle of force and momentum in physics, airbags work by increasing the time of impact (lowering the force of impact as \(F=\frac{\Delta p}{\Delta t}\), where \(\Delta p\) is the change in momentum and \(\Delta t\) is the time of impact), spreading the impact over a larger area (reducing pressure as \(P = \frac{F}{A}\), where \(P\) is pressure, \(F\) is force and \(A\) is area). Also, they do not lower the momentum of the driver and passengers (the change in momentum \(\Delta p = m\Delta v\) is determined by the mass \(m\) of the driver/passenger and the change in velocity \(\Delta v\) of the vehicle).

Answer:

Airbags lower the force of the impact.