Question

what would happen wednesday - what would happen if the people in an elevator all jumped just before it crashed?

Explanation:

Step1: Consider Newton's laws

When the elevator is in free - fall (crashing), the people and the elevator are accelerating downwards at the same rate due to gravity. When people jump, they exert an upward force on the elevator floor. But the overall motion is still dominated by gravity.

Step2: Analyze the effect on impact

The upward jump gives a small upward velocity relative to the elevator. However, the time available for this upward motion is extremely short. And the overall downward momentum and the large acceleration due to gravity mean that the impact force on landing (either on the elevator floor or the ground) will still be very large.

Answer:

Jumping just before the elevator crashes would not significantly reduce the impact force or prevent injury or death. The short - lived upward motion from the jump is negligible compared to the large downward velocity due to the free - fall motion of the elevator.