You are holding a shopping basket at the grocery store with two 0.68- cartons of cereal at the left end of the basket. The basket is 0.80 long. Where should you place a 1.8- half gallon of milk, relative to the left end of the basket, so that the center of mass of your groceries is at the center of the basket?

Question

You are holding a shopping basket at the grocery store with two 0.68- cartons of cereal at the left end of the basket. The basket is 0.80  long. Where should you place a 1.8- half gallon of milk, relative to the left end of the basket, so that the center of mass of your groceries is at the center of the basket?

drwls · Answer

You need to provide units for your masses and lengths. I assume the masses are in kg and the distances in meters.

The widths of the cartons of cereal are needed for an accurate answer.

To get an answer, make sure the torques due to the cereal and milk are equal and opposite, when measured about the center.