Moment of Inertia / Mass Element proof

raintrek
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Homework Statement



A thin square plate of side a has one corner at the origin and two sides along the positive x and y axes. If the density of the plate is given by p(x,y) = xy show that its mass is M=(1/4)a^4
If the distance of the mass element dM = pdS from the origin is r the moment of inertia of the plate is I= integral [r^2 (pdS)] where S is the surface of the plate. Prove that I=Ma^2

Homework Equations



The Attempt at a Solution



I've proved the first half by showing

M = pdV and taking a small mass element, then integrating

(0->a)int(dx) (0->a)int(dy) xy = (a^2)/2 * (a^2)/2 = (1/4)a^4

However I can't seem to get started with the second part...
 
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Just use the given definition:

I=\int_0^a \int_0^a r^2\rho dxdy.

What is r^2 in terms of x and y?
 
There are two things I don't understand about this problem. First, when finding the nth root of a number, there should in theory be n solutions. However, the formula produces n+1 roots. Here is how. The first root is simply ##\left(r\right)^{\left(\frac{1}{n}\right)}##. Then you multiply this first root by n additional expressions given by the formula, as you go through k=0,1,...n-1. So you end up with n+1 roots, which cannot be correct. Let me illustrate what I mean. For this...

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