Question

You stand on a spring scale on the floor of an elevator. Of the following, the scale shows the largest reading when the elevator:

A.moves upward with increasing speed
B.moves downward with increasing speed
C.moves downward at constant speed
D.moves upward with decreasing speed
E.remains stationary

Answer 1

The scale shows the largest reading when the elevator moves upward with increasing speed. When the elevator accelerates upward, the scale reading will be greater than the person's weight. On the other hand, if the elevator moves downward with increasing speed, the scale reading will be less than the person's weight.

Step-by-step explanation:

The scale shows the largest reading when the elevator moves upward with increasing speed (option A). When the elevator accelerates upward, the scale reading will be greater than the person's weight because the scale is pushing up on them with a force greater than their weight. The greater the acceleration of the elevator, the greater the scale reading.

On the other hand, when the elevator moves downward with increasing speed (option B), the scale reading will be less than the person's weight. If the elevator reaches a constant upward or downward velocity (options C and D), the scale reading will be equal to the person's weight. If the elevator remains stationary (option E), the scale reading will also be equal to the person's weight.