Question

A metre scale has been suspended horizontally in its middle. A load of 10 Newton is placed at one end of it.At what distance 4 Newton effort be placed to balance it ?

A) 2.5 meters
B) 5 meters
C) 1 meter
D) 0.5 meters

Answer 1

The 4 Newton effort must be placed 2.5 meters from the pivot point to balance the 10 Newton load on a suspended meter scale, according to the principle of moments, making the correct answer A) 2.5 meters.

Step-by-step explanation:

To solve this question, we need to apply the principle of moments, which is also referred to as the principle of leverage or the principle of torque. The moment of a force is a measure of its tendency to cause a body to rotate about a specific point or axis and is calculated as the product of the force and the perpendicular distance from the pivot point to the line of action of the force.

The equation for balance in moments is given by:

Moment of load = Moment of effort

where,

Moment of load = Load force x Distance from pivot

Moment of effort = Effort force x Distance from pivot

Let's denote the distance needed for the 4 Newton effort to balance the 10 Newton load as d. We have:

10 N * 1 m = 4 N * d

Simplifying, we get: d = (10 N * 1 m) / 4 N = 2.5 m

Therefore, the 4 Newton effort must be placed at a distance of 2.5 meters from the pivot point to balance the load of 10 Newtons, making option A) 2.5 meters the correct answer.