Thursday, November 26, 2009

Lever



Levers can be used to exert a large force over a small distance at one end by exerting only a small force over a greater distance at the other.

In physics, a lever (from French lever, "to raise", c.f. a levant) is a rigid object that is used with an appropriate fulcrum or pivot point to multiply the mechanical force that can be applied to another object. This leverage is also termed mechanical advantage, and is one example of the principle of moments. A lever is one of the six simple machines. Archimedes once said, "Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world." First class levers are similar but not the same as second or third class levers, in which the fulcrum, resistance, and effort are in different locations.

Creative Commons: Wikipedia

No comments:

Post a Comment