The spring constant of a spring is 7.1 n/cm. the constant applies to forces that

compress the spring, but not stretch it

either stretch or compress the spring

stretch the spring, but not compress it

Hi!

The correct answer is : either stretch or compress the spring

The spring constant, denoted commonly as k, is a component of Hooke's law which describes the force that is required to compress or stretch an object to be directly proportional to the length of extension or compression.

F ∝ x

where F is the force applied to the spring, and x is the length of extension or compression.

The equation of Hooke's law is consequently

F = kx

where k is a non zero constant, known as the spring constant.

it is given that trillions of microbes make up to 1% to 3% of the body mass.

let's take average of this percentage: 2%

consider the average mass of the human body as 70 kg.

then, trillions of microbes would have mass  

therefore, 100 trillion micro-organisms would weigh:

this is an approximate value and could change depending on the mass of the human body and percentage of the microbes present in it.

average mass per microorganism =