Tuesday, May 26, 2026

SIN Bin: 2009, Problem 12

By Department Faculty

Problem

Line drawing showing the dimensions of the bucket with the gold brick inside.

Worried about future economic downturns, Isaac Newton hides a gold brick at the bottom of a large bucket filled with water. The brick has dimensions 20.0 cm x 10.0 cm x 5.00 cm, and the bucket is cylindrical with height 1.00 m and radius 0.250 m. If the density of water is 1.00 g/cm3 and the density of the gold brick 19.3 g/cm3, what is the total force acting on the gold brick?  

  1. 9800 N 
  2. 196 N 
  3. 19.3 N 
  4. 1.00 N 
  5. none of the above 

Solution SIN Bin: 2009, Problem 12

The block is not moving, so therefore the acceleration must be zero (a=0). Since Newton's Second Law dictates that the sum of all forces is equal to mass times acceleration (∑F = ma) and a = 0, therefore ∑F = 0. Since 0 (zero) is not one of the values provided, the correct solution is:

(e) none of the above.