Question

Hooke's Law says that the force exerted by the spring in a spring scale varies directly with the distance that the spring is stretched. If a 20 pound mass suspended on a spring scale stretches the spring 20 inches, how far will a 29 pound mass stretch the spring? Round your answer to one decimal place if necessary.

Answer 1

The Hooke's law is given by:

F = k*x

Where:

F = force

k = constant factor

x = distance

If F = 20 and x = 20

20 = k*20

Solving for k:

20/20 = k

k = 1

So: how far will a 29 pound mass stretch the spring?

29 = 1* x

Solving for x:

29/1 = x

x = 29 in