Hi this question is beyond me, so any help = great.
A useful instrument for evaluating fibromyalgia and trigger-point tenderness is the Doloriometer or Algorimeter. This device consists of a force meter attached to a circular probe that is pressed against the skin until pain is experienced.
If the reading of the force meter is 3.30 lb, and the diameter of the circular probe is 1.39 cm , what is the pressure applied to the skin? Give your answer in pascals.
Pressure is defined as force/area
You will need to change lb to Newtons
and cm to m.
1lb= 4.45N
one pascal is 1N per meter^2
To find the pressure applied to the skin, we can use the formula:
Pressure = Force / Area
First, we need to convert the force from pounds to newtons, since the unit of pressure is pascals (Pa) in the metric system.
1 pound (lb) is approximately 4.44822 newtons (N). So, the force of 3.30 lb is equivalent to:
3.30 lb * 4.44822 N/lb = 14.64696 N
Next, we need to calculate the area of the circular probe. The formula for the area of a circle is:
Area = π * radius^2
Given the diameter of the circular probe is 1.39 cm, we can calculate the radius by dividing the diameter by 2:
Radius = 1.39 cm / 2 = 0.695 cm
Now, let's convert the radius to meters to match the unit of force:
0.695 cm * 0.01 m/cm = 0.00695 m
Finally, we can calculate the area:
Area = π * (0.00695 m)^2
Using the value of π ≈ 3.14159, we get:
Area ≈ 0.0001517 m^2
Now, we can substitute the values into the formula for pressure:
Pressure = 14.64696 N / 0.0001517 m^2
Calculating this value gives us the pressure applied to the skin in pascals (Pa), which is the desired unit.