Answer :
To calculate the pressure, divide the force of 53.5 pounds by the area of 2.32 square inches, which results in approximately 23.1 lb/in², matching option 4 provided.
The question is asking to calculate the pressure exerted by a force on a given area. The formula for pressure (P) is P = Force (F) / Area (A). In this case, the force is 53.5 pounds (lb) and the area is 2.32 square inches (in2). Using the formula, we get:
P = 53.5 lb / 2.32 lb/in² = 23.0646551724 lb/in²
Now we need to round this to a reasonable number of significant figures, given that the force was provided to three significant figures. The pressure, therefore, is approximately 23.1 lb/in², which corresponds to option 4 in the question provided by the student.
