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PhysicsDud
Jan10-06, 11:26 PM
I'm not sure how to go about doing this question. Any help would be great.

A window cleaner of mass 95 kg places a 22-kg ladder against a frictionless
wall, at an angle 65° with the horizontal. The ladder is 10 m long and rests on a
wet floor with a coefficient of static friction equal to 0.40. What is the maximum
length that the window cleaner can climb before the ladder slips?

Thanks!

Hootenanny
Jan11-06, 08:17 AM
Try taking moments about a point.

vaishakh
Jan11-06, 01:02 PM
Draw a free body diagram and then find what force is enough for the ladder to slip. Here torqueplays the role. You take a general point on the ladderabove its centre. Find normal reaction, friction, torque, etc. And then equate them with the distance from centreas variable.

vaishakh
Jan11-06, 01:05 PM
Sorry here centre of axis is not the centre of ladder, it is the poit at which it touches the surface..

PhysicsDud
Jan11-06, 02:14 PM
Thanks so much for the help!