Answer to Question #293319 in Physics for torque

Question

Two pans of a balance are 25.7 cm apart.

The fulcrum of the balance has been shifted

0.893 cm away from the center by a dishonest

shopkeeper.

By what percentage is the true weight of the

goods being marked up by the shopkeeper?

Assume the balance has negligible mass.

Answer 1

The percentage is

$$\epsilon=\dfrac{0.893}{25.7}·100\%=3.5\%.$$