| Step | Derivation / Formula | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | \[A_L = 250\,\text{cm}^2\] | The problem states the large piston has an area of \(250\,\text{cm}^2\). (Units written as cm² imply area, not radius.) |
| 2 | \[A_s = 25\,\text{cm}^2\] | The small piston’s area is \(25\,\text{cm}^2\). |
| 3 | \[\frac{A_L}{A_s} = \frac{250}{25} = 10\] | Find the area ratio; this will be the mechanical advantage of the hydraulic system. |
| 4 | \[F_L = mg\] | The force that must be supported on the large piston equals the car’s weight (mass times gravitational acceleration). |
| 5 | \[F_L = 1500\,(\text{kg}) \times 9.8\,(\text{m/s}^2) = 14700\,\text{N}\] | Compute the car’s weight. |
| 6 | \[\frac{F_s}{A_s} = \frac{F_L}{A_L}\] | Pascal’s principle: pressure is transmitted undiminished throughout the fluid. |
| 7 | \[F_s = F_L \left(\frac{A_s}{A_L}\right)\] | Rearrange the equality of pressures to solve for the required force on the small piston. |
| 8 | \[F_s = 14700\,\text{N} \left(\frac{1}{10}\right) = 1470\,\text{N}\] | Substitute values and area ratio to find \(F_s\). |
| 9 | \[\boxed{F_s \approx 1470\,\text{N}}\] | Final force that must be applied to the small piston. |
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The diagram above shows a hydraulic chamber with a spring \( (k_s = 1250 \, \text{N/m}) \) attached to the input piston and a rock of mass \( 55.2 \, \text{kg} \) resting on the output plunger. The input piston and output plunger are at about the same height, and each has negligible mass. The chamber is filled with water.
A diver descends from a salvage ship to the ocean floor at a depth of \(35 \text{ m}\) below the surface. The density of ocean water is \(1.025 \times 10^3 \text{ kg/m}^3\).
A drinking fountain projects water at an initial angle of \( 50^ \circ \) above the horizontal, and the water reaches a maximum height of \( 0.150 \) \( \text{m} \) above the point of exit. Assume air resistance is negligible.

The figure above shows a portion of a conduit for water, one with rectangular cross sections. If the flow speed at the top is \( v \), what is the flow speed at the bottom?
Water circulates throughout a house in a hot water heating system. If the water is pumped at a speed of \( 0.5 \) \( \frac{\text{m}}{\text{s}} \) through a \( 2 \) \( \text{cm} \) diameter pipe in the basement under a pressure of \( 3 \) \( \text{atm} \), what will be the flow speed and pressure in a \( 1.3 \) \( \text{cm} \) diameter pipe on the second floor \( 5 \) \( \text{m} \) above?
A trash compactor pushes down with a force of \( 500 \) \( \text{N} \) on a \( 3 \) \( \text{cm}^2 \) input piston, causing a force of \( 30,000 \) \( \text{N} \) to crush the trash. What is the area of the output piston that crushes the trash?

Three identical reservoirs, \(A\), \(B\), and \(C\), are represented above, each with a small pipe where water exits horizontally. The pipes are set at the same height above a pool of water. The water in the reservoirs is kept at the levels shown. Which of the following correctly ranks the horizontal distances \( d \) that the streams of water travel before hitting the surface of the pool?

A helium-filled balloon is attached by a string of negligible mass to a small \(0.015 \ \text{kg}\) object that is just heavy enough to keep the balloon from rising. The total mass of the balloon, including the helium, is \(0.0050 \ \text{kg}\). The density of air is \(\rho_{\text{air}} = 1.29 \ \text{kg/m}^3\), and the density of helium is \(\rho_{\text{He}} = 0.179 \ \text{kg/m}^3\). The buoyant force on the \(0.015 \ \text{kg}\) object is small enough to be negligible.

Alcohol has a specific gravity of \( 0.79 \). If a barometer consisting of an open-ended tube placed in a dish of alcohol is used at sea level, to what height in the tube will the alcohol rise?
A block of weight \( W \) is floating in water, and one-third of the block is above the surface of the water. Which of the following correctly describes the magnitude \( F \) of the force that the block exerts on the water and explains why \( F \) has that value?
\(1470\,\text{N}\)
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| Kinematics | Forces |
|---|---|
| \(\Delta x = v_i t + \frac{1}{2} at^2\) | \(F = ma\) |
| \(v = v_i + at\) | \(F_g = \frac{G m_1 m_2}{r^2}\) |
| \(v^2 = v_i^2 + 2a \Delta x\) | \(f = \mu N\) |
| \(\Delta x = \frac{v_i + v}{2} t\) | \(F_s =-kx\) |
| \(v^2 = v_f^2 \,-\, 2a \Delta x\) |
| Circular Motion | Energy |
|---|---|
| \(F_c = \frac{mv^2}{r}\) | \(KE = \frac{1}{2} mv^2\) |
| \(a_c = \frac{v^2}{r}\) | \(PE = mgh\) |
| \(T = 2\pi \sqrt{\frac{r}{g}}\) | \(KE_i + PE_i = KE_f + PE_f\) |
| \(W = Fd \cos\theta\) |
| Momentum | Torque and Rotations |
|---|---|
| \(p = mv\) | \(\tau = r \cdot F \cdot \sin(\theta)\) |
| \(J = \Delta p\) | \(I = \sum mr^2\) |
| \(p_i = p_f\) | \(L = I \cdot \omega\) |
| Simple Harmonic Motion | Fluids |
|---|---|
| \(F = -kx\) | \(P = \frac{F}{A}\) |
| \(T = 2\pi \sqrt{\frac{l}{g}}\) | \(P_{\text{total}} = P_{\text{atm}} + \rho gh\) |
| \(T = 2\pi \sqrt{\frac{m}{k}}\) | \(Q = Av\) |
| \(x(t) = A \cos(\omega t + \phi)\) | \(F_b = \rho V g\) |
| \(a = -\omega^2 x\) | \(A_1v_1 = A_2v_2\) |
| Constant | Description |
|---|---|
| [katex]g[/katex] | Acceleration due to gravity, typically [katex]9.8 , \text{m/s}^2[/katex] on Earth’s surface |
| [katex]G[/katex] | Universal Gravitational Constant, [katex]6.674 \times 10^{-11} , \text{N} \cdot \text{m}^2/\text{kg}^2[/katex] |
| [katex]\mu_k[/katex] and [katex]\mu_s[/katex] | Coefficients of kinetic ([katex]\mu_k[/katex]) and static ([katex]\mu_s[/katex]) friction, dimensionless. Static friction ([katex]\mu_s[/katex]) is usually greater than kinetic friction ([katex]\mu_k[/katex]) as it resists the start of motion. |
| [katex]k[/katex] | Spring constant, in [katex]\text{N/m}[/katex] |
| [katex] M_E = 5.972 \times 10^{24} , \text{kg} [/katex] | Mass of the Earth |
| [katex] M_M = 7.348 \times 10^{22} , \text{kg} [/katex] | Mass of the Moon |
| [katex] M_M = 1.989 \times 10^{30} , \text{kg} [/katex] | Mass of the Sun |
| Variable | SI Unit |
|---|---|
| [katex]s[/katex] (Displacement) | [katex]\text{meters (m)}[/katex] |
| [katex]v[/katex] (Velocity) | [katex]\text{meters per second (m/s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]a[/katex] (Acceleration) | [katex]\text{meters per second squared (m/s}^2\text{)}[/katex] |
| [katex]t[/katex] (Time) | [katex]\text{seconds (s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]m[/katex] (Mass) | [katex]\text{kilograms (kg)}[/katex] |
| Variable | Derived SI Unit |
|---|---|
| [katex]F[/katex] (Force) | [katex]\text{newtons (N)}[/katex] |
| [katex]E[/katex], [katex]PE[/katex], [katex]KE[/katex] (Energy, Potential Energy, Kinetic Energy) | [katex]\text{joules (J)}[/katex] |
| [katex]P[/katex] (Power) | [katex]\text{watts (W)}[/katex] |
| [katex]p[/katex] (Momentum) | [katex]\text{kilogram meters per second (kgm/s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]\omega[/katex] (Angular Velocity) | [katex]\text{radians per second (rad/s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]\tau[/katex] (Torque) | [katex]\text{newton meters (Nm)}[/katex] |
| [katex]I[/katex] (Moment of Inertia) | [katex]\text{kilogram meter squared (kgm}^2\text{)}[/katex] |
| [katex]f[/katex] (Frequency) | [katex]\text{hertz (Hz)}[/katex] |
Metric Prefixes
Example of using unit analysis: Convert 5 kilometers to millimeters.
Start with the given measurement: [katex]\text{5 km}[/katex]
Use the conversion factors for kilometers to meters and meters to millimeters: [katex]\text{5 km} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{m}}{1 \, \text{km}} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{mm}}{1 \, \text{m}}[/katex]
Perform the multiplication: [katex]\text{5 km} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{m}}{1 \, \text{km}} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{mm}}{1 \, \text{m}} = 5 \times 10^3 \times 10^3 \, \text{mm}[/katex]
Simplify to get the final answer: [katex]\boxed{5 \times 10^6 \, \text{mm}}[/katex]
Prefix | Symbol | Power of Ten | Equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|
Pico- | p | [katex]10^{-12}[/katex] | 0.000000000001 |
Nano- | n | [katex]10^{-9}[/katex] | 0.000000001 |
Micro- | µ | [katex]10^{-6}[/katex] | 0.000001 |
Milli- | m | [katex]10^{-3}[/katex] | 0.001 |
Centi- | c | [katex]10^{-2}[/katex] | 0.01 |
Deci- | d | [katex]10^{-1}[/katex] | 0.1 |
(Base unit) | – | [katex]10^{0}[/katex] | 1 |
Deca- or Deka- | da | [katex]10^{1}[/katex] | 10 |
Hecto- | h | [katex]10^{2}[/katex] | 100 |
Kilo- | k | [katex]10^{3}[/katex] | 1,000 |
Mega- | M | [katex]10^{6}[/katex] | 1,000,000 |
Giga- | G | [katex]10^{9}[/katex] | 1,000,000,000 |
Tera- | T | [katex]10^{12}[/katex] | 1,000,000,000,000 |
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