Final answer:
The exact mechanical advantage of the screw with a 2.3 mm radius and unspecified lead cannot be calculated without additional information. The mechanical advantage of a screw is calculated using the formula involving the screw's radius and lead; however, only the radius is provided here.
Step-by-step explanation:
The mechanical advantage (MA) of a machine describes how much the machine amplifies an input force. For a screw, the mechanical advantage can be calculated using the formula MA = (2 * π * radius) / (lead), where the lead is the distance between threads, which is equal to the pitch in case of a single-threaded screw. In the context of the question provided, the student has misunderstood the concept as the information provided is insufficient to calculate the mechanical advantage without the pitch or lead of the screw.
However, to exemplify the concept more clearly, consider question 22 from the reference material: "A typical car has an axle with 1.10 cm radius driving a tire with a radius of 27.5 cm. What is its mechanical advantage?" The mechanical advantage in this case would be the ratio of the radius of the tire to the radius of the axle, hence, MA = (27.5 cm) / (1.10 cm) = 25. This means the axle increases the applied force by a factor of 25.