A certain orthodontist uses a wire brace to align a patient's crooked tooth as in the figure below. The tension in the wire is adjusted to have a magnitude of 12.40 N. Find the magnitude of the net force exerted by the wire on the crooked tooth.
To find the magnitude of the net force exerted by the wire on the crooked tooth, we need to consider the forces acting on the tooth in the horizontal direction.
First, we know that the tension in the wire is 12.40 N. This tension force is directed along the wire and pulls on the tooth.
Since the tooth is initially crooked, there might be an additional force acting on it, depending on the situation described in the figure. If the tooth is being pulled towards the left, there would be a force pulling to the left. If the tooth is being pulled towards the right, there would be a force pulling to the right.
Let's assume that the tooth is being pulled towards the left. In that case, the force pulling to the left would be the force that the wire exerts on the tooth, which is the tension force.
Therefore, the magnitude of the net force exerted by the wire on the crooked tooth is 12.40 N, considering the tension force acting in the opposite direction to the force applied to the tooth to straighten it.