Is Holding a Weight at Arm's Length Considered Work?

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SUMMARY

The discussion clarifies that a boy holding a 40N weight at arm's length for 10 seconds does not perform any work on the weight due to the absence of displacement. Despite the weight being held at a height of 1.5 meters, the key factor is that there is no motion involved. Even if the weight were moved along a complex path and returned to its original position, the work done would still be zero, as work is defined by the displacement of the object.

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A boy holds a 40N weight at arm's length for 10s. His arm is 1.5m above the ground. The work done by the force of the boy on the weight he is holding. He would not be doing any work, because their is no motion and he is lifting it up.

Thank you
 
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blackout85 said:
He would not be doing any work, because their is no motion and he is lifting it up.

A better way to state the answer would be to say that the displacement of the object is zero. For if he had taken the object along some crazy path and brought it back to where he started, the work done would still be zero, even though the object had moved.
 

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