Question

A sack of flour has a weight of \(19.8 \mathrm{N} .\) What is its weight in pounds?

Short answer

Answer: The weight of the sack of flour is approximately 4.45 pounds.

Step-by-step solution

Identify the given information and the conversion factor

We are given the weight of the sack of flour as \(19.8\,\mathrm{N}\). To convert this to pounds, we need the conversion factor. It is generally accepted that \(1\,\mathrm{lb} \approx 4.448\,\mathrm{N}\). So, we will use this conversion factor to perform the conversion.

Convert the weight from Newtons to pounds

To convert the weight of the sack of flour from Newtons to pounds, we will use the conversion factor \(1\,\mathrm{lb} \approx 4.448\,\mathrm{N}\). We have: Weight in pounds = \(\frac{\text{Weight in Newtons}}{\text{Conversion factor}}\) Weight in pounds = \(\frac{19.8\,\mathrm{N}}{4.448\,(\frac{\mathrm{N}}{\mathrm{lb}})}\)

Calculate the weight in pounds

Now, we will compute the weight of the sack of flour in pounds: Weight in pounds = \(\frac{19.8}{4.448}\) Weight in pounds = \(4.45\,\mathrm{lb}\) (rounded to two decimal places) So, the weight of the sack of flour is approximately \(4.45\,\mathrm{lb}\).