
Answer:
Explanation:
Draw a free body diagram for the painter. Â There are three forces acting on him. Â The tension in the rope pulling him up, the normal force of the chair pushing him up, and gravity pulling him down.
Apply Newton's second law:
∑F = ma
T + N - W = ma
Since the painter is at rest, a = 0.
T + N - W = 0
T = W - N
T = Mg - N
Now draw a free body diagram of the chair. Â The chair has three forces acting on it also. Â The tension in the rope pulling it up, the normal force pushing down, and gravity pulling down.
Newton's second law for the chair:
∑F = ma
T - W - N = ma
Since the chair is also not accelerating, a = 0:
T - W - N = 0
T = W + N
T = mg + N
Now we have two equations and two variables. Â If we add the equations together, we can eliminate N:
2T = Mg + mg
2T = (M + m) g
T = (M + m) g / 2
Given that M = 55 kg, m = 10 kg, and g = 9.8 m/s²:
T = (55 + 10) (9.8) / 2
T = 318.5 N
If we round to two sig-figs, the tension in the rope is 320 N.