Simple Machines

Machines don't reduce the amount of work that needs done but they make it easier for us.  That ease is called mechanical advantage.   

If a machine allows a person to exert half the force it would otherwise require to do work on an object, it is considered to have a mechanical advantage of 2.  If it requires 1/3 the work, the mechanical advantage is 3 and so on.

4 types of simple machines

1. Inclined planes

2.  Levers

3. Wheel and axle

4. Pulley

1. Inclined Planes.  Possibly the earliest example of a simple machine.   This is basically a ramp that allows a heavy weight to be elevated gradually.   The work is the same because the distance is longer.   Construction of the Pyramids in Egypt are an example of inclined planes to do massive amounts of work with human labor.

2. Lever.