Explanation
To balance this lever the torques on each side of the fulcrum must be equal. Torque is weight x distance from the fulcrum so the equation for equilibrium is:
\(R_{a} d_{a}=R_{b} d_{b}\)
where a represents the left side of the fulcrum and b the right, R is resistance (weight) and d is the distance from the fulcrum.Solving for da, our missing value, and plugging in our variables yields:
\(d_{a}=\frac{R_{b} d_{b}}{R_{a}}=\frac{50 l b . \times 7 f t .}{20 l b .}=\frac{350 f t . l b .}{20 l b .}=17.5 \mathrm{ft}\)