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Confusion with position vector for torque

Physics Asked on December 19, 2020

Let’s say we have a particle of mass $M$ attached to a point $P_0$ by some massless rod of length $T$ and it is undergoing circular motion at a constant angular velocity.

There is more to this problem, but my confusion only lies here. We define torque as $mathbf{tau}=mathbf{r}times mathbf{F}$ where $r$ is the position vector which in this specific case gets us from $P_0$ to our particle. In my textbook it says the torque is $MgTsin(theta)-F_{cent}Tcos(theta)$ where $F_{cent}$ is the centripetal force acting on the particle.

How do we arrive at this result? I understand our position vector is $Tsin(theta)-Tcos(theta)$, but I don’t understand how our force is defined in the equation for torque. A cross product of $(Tsin(theta)-Tcos(theta))times (Mg+F_{cent})$ wouldn’t give me the result defined above. What am I missing? If it helps, this is a first-year mechanics class.

One Answer

I understand our position vector is $Tsin(theta)−Tcos(theta)$...

A cross product of $(Tsin(theta)−Tcos(theta))×(Mg+F_text{cent})$...

$Tsin(theta)−Tcos(theta)$ isn't a vector quantity. Hence it also does not make sense to take the "cross product" of it with the force vectors. Hint: figure out what the $boldsymbol{r}$ and $boldsymbol{F}$ vectors are (both magnitude and direction), then try calculating the cross product of those vectors.

Answered by hiccups on December 19, 2020

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