Page 3 - SIMPLE MACHINES

When you and your friend sit at the opposite ends of a seesaw, you use a lever. The
rod of the seesaw is attached to a support at a fixed point. This point acts as the
fulcrum. The load is the weight of the person you are trying to lift, while you act as
the effort.

Types of levers

There are three types of levers based on the positions of the fulcrum, load and effort.

 A first-class Lever: The lever has the fulcrum in the middle, between the load and the
effort. Classic example is see saw.

REPRESENTATION OF A FIRST- CLASS LEVER

Other first class levers include:

A car jack, a pair of pliers, a pair of scissors, a water pump, a balance or pair of weigh scales,
a crowbar, a claw of a hammer taking out a nail, or a lever with a rock as its fulcrum trying
to lift another rock.