Question

The largest goat ever grown on a farm had a mass of 181 kg; on the other hand, the smallest “pygmy” goats have a mass of only about 16 kg. Imagine an agricultural show in which a large goat with a mass of 181 kg exerts a pressure on a hydraulic-lift piston that is equal to the pressure exerted by three pygmy goats, each of which has a mass of 16.0 kg. The area of the piston on which the large goat stands is 1.8 m². What is the area of the piston on which the pygmy goats stand?

Answer 1

Answer:

The weight per unit area will be the same for both sets of animals

as weight is proportional to mass we can use the masses only

M/A = 3m/A1

181/1.8 = (3*16)/A1

A1 = 48(1.8)/181

A1 = 0.477 m²