SOLUTION: Law of the Lever; For a system to balance, the product of the weight and its distance from the fulcrum must be the same on each side; that is, (W1*X1)=(W2*X2). This equation is

Algebra ->  Length-and-distance -> SOLUTION: Law of the Lever; For a system to balance, the product of the weight and its distance from the fulcrum must be the same on each side; that is, (W1*X1)=(W2*X2). This equation is       Log On


   

Question 776513: Law of the Lever;
For a system to balance, the product of the weight and its distance from the fulcrum must be the same on each side; that is, (W1*X1)=(W2*X2). This equation is called the law of the lever.
A woman and her son are playing on a seesaw. The boy is at one end, 8 feet from the fulcrum. If the son weighs 100 lb and the mother weighs 125 lb, where should the woman sit so that the seesaw is balanced?
Answer by KMST(5328) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
W%5B1%5D%2AX%5B1%5D=W%5B2%5D%2AX%5B2%5D
Let's make the son number 1 (and his mother number 2).
W%5B1%5D=100lb
X%5B1%5D=8feet
W%5B2%5D=125lb
X%5B2%5D= distance from the fulcrum to the mother
100%2A8=125%2AX%5B2%5D --> 100%2A8%2F125=X%5B2%5D --> X%5B2%5D=32%2F5
We can also express that as
X%5B2%5D=6.4 or X%5B2%5D=6%262%2F5
Or we can say that the mother should sit at 6 feet 5 inches from the fulcrum
6%262%2F5feet=6feet%282%2F5%29%2A12inches, but %282%2F5%29%2A12=4.8=about5, and nobody measures fractions of an inch when playing on a seesaw.