Mistake Master
Mistake Master · AP Physics 1 · Unit 5 · Step-Through Animation
Torque: Where You Push Is Half the Physics
You'll learnthat torque depends on force, distance from the pivot, and the angle of the push.
A force pushes; a torque turns. Watch the lever arm get drawn as a perpendicular — from the pivot to the line of action — and a 6 N weight fight a 3 N weight to a draw.
TORQUE LAB
Before you start
What you're looking at
A beam pivoting about a central axis, rocking as forces act at different distances from that pivot.
The question
Why can a smaller force hold its own against a larger one and balance the beam?
Watch for
The lever arm drawn as a perpendicular from the pivot to the line of action; predict which side turns the beam.
What the symbols mean
The pivot is the turning axis; the lever arm is the perpendicular distance; counterclockwise turns are positive, clockwise negative.
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