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How can I make a lever better?

A lever is a simple machine which is used to move or lift heavier loads at the expense of relatively smaller effort. A lever consists of a bar and a hinged support, known as the fulcrum. The two ends of the bar, one where the effort is applied and the other one where the load is present, are known as the effort end and load end (or resistance end). The aim of the lever is...

A lever is a simple machine which is used to move or lift heavier loads at the expense of relatively smaller effort. A lever consists of a bar and a hinged support, known as the fulcrum. The two ends of the bar, one where the effort is applied and the other one where the load is present, are known as the effort end and load end (or resistance end). The aim of the lever is to move or lift maximum load at the expense of minimal effort. The effectiveness of a lever is often described by a factor known as mechanical advantage, which is given as:


mechanical advantage = length of effort arm / length of load arm


The distance of the effort end from the fulcrum is the length of the effort arm. Similarly, the distance between the load end and fulcrum is the length of the load arm. 


A mechanical advantage of more than 1 is preferred, as it means more work is done at the expense of lesser effort. Thus, a better lever will have a higher value of mechanical advantage and for that we need to keep the fulcrum as close as possible to the load end. The closer the fulcrum is to the load end, the higher the mechanical advantage will be and the lesser the effort required will be.


Hope this helps. 


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