Final answer:
To place the object to form a virtual image at a distance of 16.1 cm behind the concave mirror, it should be placed approximately 16 cm in front of the mirror. The magnification of the image is approximately -1.006.
Step-by-step explanation:
To determine where to place the object, we can use the mirror equation: 1/f = 1/do + 1/di. In this case, the object distance, do, is the distance from the object to the mirror, which we need to find. The focal length, f, of the mirror is half its radius of curvature, which is 16.0 cm. The image distance, di, is given as 16.1 cm. Rearranging the equation, we get: 1/do = 1/f - 1/di. Plugging in the values, 1/do = 1/16 - 1/16.1. Solving for do, we find that the object should be placed approximately 16 cm in front of the mirror.
The magnification of the image can be determined using the magnification equation: m = -di/do. Plugging in the values, m = -16.1/16, we find that the magnification of this particular image is approximately -1.006 (negative sign indicates that the image is inverted).