Question

A meterstick is balanced on a fulcrum at its center. then a 240 n weight is placed 15 cm to the left of center. how many cm to the right of center would a 200 n weight need to be placed in order to balance the system?

Answer 1

At equilibrium,
w1d1 = w2d2

Where,
w1 = weight 1
d1 = distance of w1 from fulcrum
w2 = weight 2
d2 = distance of w2 from fulcrum

Substituting;
240*15 = 200*d2
d2 = (240*15)/200 = 18 cm

Therefore, 200 N weight should be placed 18 cm from the fulcrum to balance the system.