Diameter of the football players' piston?

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The discussion centers on calculating the diameter of a piston used to lift four football players with a hydraulic lift. The initial calculation attempted to relate the weight of the cheerleader and the players through their respective piston diameters. Participants noted potential calculation errors and discussed the importance of cross-multiplication and significant figures. After reevaluation, the correct diameter for the football players' piston was confirmed to be approximately 55.86 cm. The thread highlights the importance of careful calculations in physics problems.
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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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