Final answer:
To achieve a total resistance lower than the smallest available resistor in a physics lab, you must connect the resistors in parallel, which provides additional paths for current flow, resulting in a decreased total resistance (Rp).
Step-by-step explanation:
When calculating the total resistance of a circuit, connecting resistors in parallel will yield a value less than the smallest resistor value. The formula for calculating the equivalent resistance of resistors in parallel shows that the total resistance decreases as more resistors are added, because they provide additional paths for the current to flow. If you have resistors that all have larger resistances than the requested value in a physics lab, you should connect them in parallel to achieve a smaller total resistance. The resulting total resistance, often represented as Rp, is guaranteed to be less than the resistance of the smallest individual resistor.