Question

suppose you want to measure the weight of a penny using your bathroom scale. your scale is accurate, but the weight of a penny is too small to register a change on your scale reading. suggest a method by which you can use your bathroom scale to accurately measure the weight of a penny using a bathroom scale. hint: how did you measure the thickness of a single page of a book? it is considered bad technique to use the end of the ruler when making measurements. can you think of a situation in which you cannot avoid using the end of the ruler to make a measurement? you want to measure the circumference of the round part of a large cylinder. you could, of course, measure the radius, and use the formula. however: you want to measure it directly, and the only measuring device you have is a ruler. (you may use other objects, but no other measuring instrument.) describe how this can be done.

Explanation:

For measuring the penny's weight, use the method of measuring multiple and averaging. For ruler end usage, consider scenarios with object length limitations. For cylinder circumference, use a string to transfer the curve to a straight line.

Answer:

1. Take a certain number of pennies (e.g., 100), measure their total weight with the bathroom scale, then divide the total weight by the number of pennies to get the weight of a single penny.
2. When the length of the object to be measured exceeds the length of the ruler, and there is no other way to measure by sections without using the end (e.g., measuring a very long stick with a short ruler, needing to start from the end and mark positions sequentially).
3. Wrap a string tightly around the round part of the cylinder, mark the point where the string overlaps, then straighten the string and measure its length with the ruler; this length is the circumference of the cylinder.