Final answer:
The term 'gauge' refers to the thickness of metal, not its weight per square foot, so the statement is false. Gauge influences thickness which combined with area determines weight, and different materials have different gauge numbers for a given thickness. Other questions addressed involve balancing on the moon, ramp forces, gravitational force, wire insulation, gravitational potential energy, and the comparison of electrostatic and gravitational constants.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that the weight of metal per square foot is termed gauge is false. The term 'gauge' refers to the thickness of a sheet of metal, rather than its weight per square foot. The weight would depend on both the area and the thickness of the metal, as well as the type of metal. For instance, a gauge number for steel might correspond to a different thickness than the same gauge number for aluminum. It is also important to remember that as the gauge number decreases, the thickness of the metal sheet increases.
In response to the other questions:
- The balance scale situation remains true. Objects maintain their mass on the moon, and if they were balanced on Earth, they should be balanced on the moon too, despite the difference in gravitational force.
- It's false to assume that the force exerted while pushing an object up a ramp is directly proportional to its weight and the height of the ramp. Actual force exerted depends on multiple factors, including the angle of the ramp and friction.
- Gravitational force indeed refers to the attraction between masses, which is not dependent on light.
- The statement about high-voltage wires being insulated is false as these wires are generally not insulated due to their high position and the economic cost of such insulation.
- The gravitational potential energy formula does indeed yield units of joules which can be expressed as kg x m2/s2.
- The relative strength of the electrostatic force compared to gravity can be inferred from Coulomb's constant and Newton's gravitational constant values, showing that electrostatic forces are generally much stronger than gravitational forces under most conditions.