A balanced lever has two weights on it, the first with mass #14 kg # and the second with mass #9 kg#. If the first weight is # 4 m# from the fulcrum, how far is the second weight from the fulcrum?

1 Answer
Feb 15, 2016

#18/7 ~~2.57 m#

Explanation:

This is an application of Archimedes' Law of th eLever, which states that when a lever is in balance the ratio of the masses must equal the ratio of the distances from the fulcrum.

If the two masses are #m_1# and #m_2# and the two distances are #d_1# and #d_2# then #m_1:m_2 = d_1:d_2#

#:14 : 9 = 4 : d_2#

#14/9 = 4 / d_2#

#d_2 = (4*9)/14 =18/7 ~~2.57 m#