Question

Julian tests four springs and records the results in the table.

A 3 column table with 4 rows. The first column is labeled Spring with entries W, X, Y, Z. The second column is labeled force applied in Newtons with entries 20, 60, 40, 50. The last column is labeled displacement in meters with entries 0.5, 0.3, 0.4, 0.1.

Which lists the springs in order of increasing spring constant?

W, Y, X, Z
W, Y, Z, X
Z, X, Y, W
X, Z, Y, W

Answer 1

Compute k = F/x for each:
- W: 20/0.5 = 40 N/m
- X: 60/0.3 = 200 N/m
- Y: 40/0.4 = 100 N/m
- Z: 50/0.1 = 500 N/m

Increasing k: W (40), Y (100), X (200), Z (500). So W, Y, X, Z.