Question

1. select an example of an inelastic collision:

an axe is thrown at a block of wood and stays in the target
a basketball is tossed at the hoop and bounces off
two sticky traps are thrown at each other and miss
a firecracker pops open into two big chunks
clear all

Explanation:

An inelastic collision is one where the two objects stick together after the collision. When an axe is thrown at a block of wood and stays in the target, the axe and the wood become one combined mass moving together. In contrast, a basketball bouncing off is an elastic - like situation (kinetic energy is conserved to some extent as it bounces), two sticky traps thrown at each other and miss is not a collision (they don't interact), and a firecracker popping is an explosion (opposite of a collision in terms of momentum transfer concept).

Answer:

An axe is thrown at a block of wood and stays in the target.