Statics Exercise (11/16/2017)

Brilli and Ignor the ants were playing on the edge of a cliff when Ignor accidentally knocked a stick off the edge and started to fall with it. Fortunately, Brilli managed to lasso a string onto the end of the stick, and is now holding on with all his might to save Ignor.

A small knot at point \(P\) keeps the stick from sliding along the cliff edge. Both Brilli and the string are strong enough to hold this state indefinitely, but Brilli worries that the stick might break. What is the magnitude of the net reaction force on the stick at point \(P\)?

Details and Assumptions:

• The mass of the stick is uniform.
• Assume the mass of the stick is much greater than the masses of the ants.
• There is an ambient downward gravitational acceleration of \(10 \text{ m/s}^2.\)
• The knot at point \(P\) behaves like a hinge.