Question

It is weigh-in time for the local under-85-kg rugby team. The bathroom scale used to assess eligibility can be described by Hooke's law and is depressed 0.82 cm by its maximum load of 125 kg.(a) What is the spring's effective spring constant (in N/m)? N/m

Answer 1

We have:

L = 0.82 cm = 0.0082m

m= 125 kg

Hooke's Law

F = k x

Where:

F = force = mg = 125 kg (9.8 m/s^2 ) = 1225 N

k= spring constant

x= stretch

k = F / x = 1225 N / 0.0082 m = 149,390.24 N/m