A Cord-Tied Rod That Cannot Swing; Weights on Inclines
Why the rod's end cannot reach m unless the cord breaks or the rod bends
Two figures show how weights change on inclined planes, then Leonardo argues in detail about a rigid rod p q tied by a cord o q: because both rod and cord are radii of circles about q, the end q cannot travel to m unless the cord lengthens, that is, unless it breaks. An 'adversary' objects that the rod p m would instead curve until its ends span the cord's length, and Leonardo replies that either the cord must break to match the rod or the rod must bend to match the cord. A short note in the lower corner, concluding the text of folio 4r, computes that one pound at b rouses two at a and pushes two at c, four pounds in all.
On this page
Various weights on inclined planes
Two figures of weights on inclined planes illustrate Leonardo's remark that different arrangements yield different apparent weights in their obliquities.
Rod and cord as radii of circles about q
If the rod p q must move its end q to m it traces the curve q m, since the rod is the semidiameter of circle q m S; but the cord o q, itself the semidiameter of circle q n S, cannot follow unless it lengthens by n m. Therefore q cannot move unless the cord breaks.
The adversary's curving rod, and the reply
The adversary claims the rod p m will curve until its ends enclose the cord's length o n. Leonardo answers that either the cord must break to become the rod's length, or the rod must bend to become the cord's length.
One pound at b makes four
Concluding the text of folio 4r, one pound at b rouses two pounds at a and pushes two at c, four pounds in all, because a too remains the centre of the turning point.
