To determine the acceleration of the book, we can use Newton's second law of motion. This law states that the force applied to an object is equal to the mass of the object multiplied by its acceleration ([tex]\( F = m \cdot a \)[/tex]). From this equation, we can solve for the acceleration ([tex]\( a \)[/tex]) by rearranging the formula:
[tex]\[ a = \frac{F}{m} \][/tex]
Here are the variables given in the problem:
- The mass ([tex]\( m \)[/tex]) of the book is 0.5 kilograms (kg).
- The force ([tex]\( F \)[/tex]) applied to the book is 20 newtons (N).
Substituting the given values into the formula, we get:
[tex]\[ a = \frac{20 \, \text{N}}{0.5 \, \text{kg}} \][/tex]
When we carry out this division, we obtain:
[tex]\[ a = 40 \, \text{m/s}^2 \][/tex]
Therefore, the acceleration of the book is [tex]\( 40 \, \text{m/s}^2 \)[/tex].
So, the correct answer is:
D. [tex]\( 40 \, \text{m/s}^2 \)[/tex]
