A fixed pulley is used to change the direction of a force and does not multiply the force applied. As such, it has a mechanical advantage of one. The benefit of a fixed pulley is that it can allow the force to be applied at a more convenient angle, for example, pulling downward or horizontally to lift an object instead of upward.

The mechanical advantage of a wheel and axle is the input radius divided by the output radius:

MA = \( \frac{r_i}{r_o} \)

In this case, the input radius (where the effort force is being applied) is 12 and the output radius (where the resistance is being applied) is 7 for a mechanical advantage of \( \frac{12}{7} \) = 1.71

MA = \( \frac{load}{effort} \) so effort = \( \frac{load}{MA} \) = \( \frac{85 lbs.}{1.71} \) = 49.71 lbs.

When a system is stable or balanced (equilibrium) all forces acting on the system cancel each other out. In the case of torque, equilibrium means that the sum of the anticlockwise moments about a center of rotation equal the sum of the clockwise moments.

The more mass a substance has the more force is required to move it or to change its direction. This resistance to changes in direction is known as inertia.

Kinetic energy is the energy of movement and is a function of the mass of an object and its speed: \(KE = {1 \over 2}mv^2\) where m is mass in kilograms, v is speed in meters per second, and KE is in joules. The most impactful quantity to kinetic energy is velocity as an increase in mass increases KE linearly while an increase in speed increases KE exponentially.