Mass & Weight

What is Mass?

Definition: It is the amount of matter in a body.

What is Weight?

Definition: It is the measure of gravitational force acting on a body.

Measuring Instruments

• Mass
  – Beam Balance
  – Electronic balance
• Weight
  – Spring balance
  – Force meter

What is the differences between mass and weight?

Answer: Mass is a scalar quantity whereas weight is a vector quantity [1m]. Mass is measured with a beam balance whereas weight is measured with a spring balance[1m].

Classic Mass & Weight Questions

1. Explain why a beam balance will give the same value of mass at different places for the same object.

• Bean balance measures the mass of the object and mass is constant and does not change from place to place.

2. Explain why a spring balance may give different readings at different places when weighing the same object.

• Spring balance measures the weight of an object which depends on the different gravitational field strength at different places (usual referring to different planets).