Diameter of the football players' piston?

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Homework Help Overview

The problem involves a hydraulic lift scenario where a cheerleader supports multiple football players. The context includes calculating the diameter of a piston based on given weights and dimensions, specifically focusing on the relationship between the diameters of two pistons in a hydraulic system.

Discussion Character

  • Mathematical reasoning

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster attempts to use a ratio based on the weights and diameters of the pistons to find the unknown diameter. Some participants suggest checking for calculation errors and considering significant figures.

Discussion Status

The discussion reflects a back-and-forth regarding the accuracy of calculations, with some participants questioning the original poster's results and others confirming the calculations after re-evaluation. There is no explicit consensus on the correctness of the initial answer.

Contextual Notes

Participants note potential issues with significant figures and express concern about the clarity of the problem statement, hinting at possible misunderstandings or misinterpretations of the setup.

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Homework Statement


A 54.0 kg cheerleader uses an oil-filled hydraulic lift to hold four 130 kg football players at a height of 1.40 m. If her piston is 18.0 cm in diameter, what is the diameter of the football players' piston?


Homework Equations





The Attempt at a Solution



54 /18^2 = 520/x^2
x= 55.85696 cm

What am i doing wrong?
 
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Run that through your calculator again; looks like a calculation error.
Might be worth writing out the cross multiplication step.
 
it's not... I still get the same answer running it through my calculator
 
Why do you think it is wrong?

Sig figs perhaps?

Edit: I must admit thread subject made me wonder if it is not XXX site link spam...
 
Last edited:
Sorry, I made the mistake! Checked it again and got your answer.
 

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