What is the difference between force and torque?
Force: A linear push or pull. | Torque: A rotational force that causes objects to spin.
What is the difference between the lever arm and the distance from the axis of rotation to the point of force application?
Lever arm: The *perpendicular* distance. | Distance: The direct distance, which may not be perpendicular and thus not used directly in torque calculation.
How do you determine the direction of torque using the right-hand rule?
1. Point your fingers in the direction of $\vec{r}$. 2. Curl your fingers towards the direction of $\vec{F}$. 3. Your thumb points in the direction of the torque $\vec{\tau}$.
What are the steps to calculating torque when the force is at an angle?
1. Break down the force into components. 2. Identify the perpendicular component to the lever arm. 3. Calculate torque using the perpendicular component and the lever arm length.
How do you calculate the magnitude of torque using the cross product?
1. Identify the magnitudes of $\vec{r}$ and $\vec{F}$. 2. Determine the angle $\theta$ between $\vec{r}$ and $\vec{F}$. 3. Calculate $|overrightarrow{\tau}| = rF \sin \theta$.
What is torque?
The rotational equivalent of force; a measure of how much a force causes an object to rotate.
Define lever arm.
The perpendicular distance from the axis of rotation to the line of action of the force.
What is the relationship between torque and lever arm?
A longer lever arm results in more torque for the same applied force.
What is the formula for the magnitude of torque?
$\tau = rF\sin\theta$, where r is the distance from the axis of rotation, F is the force, and ฮธ is the angle between the force and position vector.
What condition maximizes torque?
Torque is maximized when the force is applied at a 90ยฐ angle to the lever arm.
