Log out Go to App
Go to App

Learning Materials

Features

Discover

Chapter 4: Problem 1

A person is standing on a bathroom scale. Which of the following is not a force exerted on the scale: a contact force due to the floor, a contact force due to the person's feet, the weight of the person, the weight of the scale?

Short Answer

Expert verified
Answer: The weight of the person.

Step by step solution

01

Understanding the forces acting on the scale

In this scenario, there are four forces mentioned. Let's try to understand each force's role: 1) contact force due to the floor: This is the normal force exerted by the floor on the scale. 2) contact force due to the person's feet: This is the force exerted by the person's feet on the scale, which is equal to the weight of the person. 3) weight of the person: This is the force due to the person's weight. It's directed towards the center of the Earth and is responsible for the scale readout. 4) weight of the scale: This is the force due to the scale's weight, and it's also directed towards the center of the Earth.
02

Identifying the force not acting on the scale

Let's analyze which force doesn't act on the scale. 1) The contact force due to the floor is acting on the scale to balance out the pressure from the weight above it. 2) The contact force due to the person's feet is acting on the scale as it's the same as the weight of the person. 3) Weight of the person is NOT exerted on the scale itself since the force due to the person's feet already represents the person's weight; thus, this force is redundant. 4) Weight of the scale is exerted on the scale as it's the force exerted by Earth acting on the scale.
03

Answer

Based on our analysis, "the weight of the person" is not a force exerted on the scale because the contact force due to the person's feet already represents the person's weight.

Unlock Step-by-Step Solutions & Ace Your Exams!

  • Full Textbook Solutions

    Get detailed explanations and key concepts

  • Unlimited Al creation

    Al flashcards, explanations, exams and more...

  • Ads-free access

    To over 500 millions flashcards

  • Money-back guarantee

    We refund you if you fail your exam.

Start your free trial

Over 30 million students worldwide already upgrade their learning with Vaia!

One App. One Place for Learning.

All the tools & learning materials you need for study success - in one app.

Get started for free

Most popular questions from this chapter

A 2010 -kg elevator moves with an upward acceleration of $1.50 \mathrm{m} / \mathrm{s}^{2} .$ What is the force exerted by the cable on the elevator?
Felipe is going for a physical before joining the swim team. He is concerned about his weight, so he carries his scale into the elevator to check his weight while heading to the doctor's office on the 21 st floor of the building. If his scale reads \(750 \mathrm{N}\) while the elevator has an upward acceleration of \(2.0 \mathrm{m} / \mathrm{s}^{2},\) what does the nurse measure his weight to be?
The vertical component of the acceleration of a sailplane is zero when the air pushes up against its wings with a force of \(3.0 \mathrm{kN}\). (a) Assuming that the only forces on the sailplane are that due to gravity and that due to the air pushing against its wings, what is the gravitational force on the Earth due to the sailplane? (b) If the wing stalls and the upward force decreases to \(2.0 \mathrm{kN}\) what is the acceleration of the sailplane?
A barge is hauled along a straight-line section of canal by two horses harnessed to tow ropes and walking along the tow paths on either side of the canal. Each horse pulls with a force of \(560 \mathrm{N}\) at an angle of \(15^{\circ}\) with the centerline of the canal. Find the sum of the two forces exerted by the horses on the barge.
An airplane of mass \(2800 \mathrm{kg}\) has just lifted off the runway. It is gaining altitude at a constant \(2.3 \mathrm{m} / \mathrm{s}\) while the horizontal component of its velocity is increasing at a rate of $0.86 \mathrm{m} / \mathrm{s}^{2} .\( Assume \)g=9.81 \mathrm{m} / \mathrm{s}^{2} .$ (a) Find the direction of the force exerted on the airplane by the air. (b) Find the horizontal and vertical components of the plane's acceleration if the force due to the air has the same magnitude but has a direction \(2.0^{\circ}\) closer to the vertical than its direction in part (a).
See all solutions

Recommended explanations on Physics Textbooks

Dynamics

Read Explanation

Electromagnetism

Read Explanation

Torque and Rotational Motion

Read Explanation

Magnetism

Read Explanation

Mechanics and Materials

Read Explanation

Further Mechanics and Thermal Physics

Read Explanation
View all explanations

What do you think about this solution?

We value your feedback to improve our textbook solutions.

Study anywhere. Anytime. Across all devices.

Sign-up for free