Question

Envision holding the end of a ruler with one hand and deforming it with the other. When you let go, you can see the oscillations of the ruler. In what way could you modify this simple experiment to increase the rigidity of the system

Answer 1

Answer: To increase the rigidity of the system you could hold the ruler at its midpoint so that the part of the ruler that oscillates is half as long as in the original experiment.

Explanation:

When a rule is displaced from its vertical position, it oscillates back and forth because of the restoring force opposing the displacement. That is, when the rule is on the left there is a force to the right.

By holding a ruler with one hand and deforming it with the other a force is generated in the opposite direction which is known as the restoring force. The restoring force causes the ruler to move back toward its stable equilibrium position, where the net force on it is zero. The momentum gained causes the ruler to move to the right leading to opposite deformation. This moves the ruler again to the left. The whole process is repeated until dissipative forces reduce the motion causing the ruler to come to rest.

The relationship between restoring force and displacement was described by Hooke's law. This states that displacement or deformation is directly proportional to the deforming force applied.

F= -kx, where,

F= restoring force

x= displacement or deformation

k= constant related to the rigidity of the system.

Therefore, the larger the force constant, the greater the restoring force, and the stiffer the system.