A cardboard sheet is cut in the shape of a triangle, with vertices at (0,0), (20,0), and (3,4) units. the thickness of the sheet is uniform. what is the x-coordinate of its center of mass?

This problem can be solved in two ways, the long way, or the short way.

1. The long way

We know that the base of the triangle is along the x-axis, and the length of the base is 20.

The centre of mass is located at 2/3 of the distance from vertex (3,4) along the median, which cuts the base at (10,0).

Therefore the centre of mass is located at

x=3 + (10-3) * 2/3=23/3

y=4/3

2. The short way

It turns out that the centre of mass of a triangle sheet is located at the mean of the coordinates of the three vertices, i. e.

CG = ((0+20+3) / 3, (0+0+4) / 3) = (23/3, 4/3) as before.