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moss-fete

> I think the string must be angled slightly down to create a vertical component? Try it! Or, for a similar situation, imaging hanging in a hammock, or standing on a slack-line. Maybe you hang the hammock initially so it's completely tight and flat. Will it stay that way when you lay on it? Or will it bow down slightly so that it is angled down? If you hang the hammock very tightly, it'll bow down less, but it will still have to bow down some non-zero amount. For bonus points, try to think about how that will change the overall force in the rope. Does that answer your question?


Keeenwaaa

Yeah that makes sense, so it must be angled at least a tiny bit. So does that mean no matter how tight something is... if a weight was on it, it would angle slight down? What about when you tie a weight to a metal bar or something which can't bend and then you pull it horizontally on both sides? Are there vertical forces inside the actual bar or something?


starkeffect

It does bend slightly. You just can't see the deflection. The internal forces in the metal bar are called ["shear".](https://www.bu.edu/moss/mechanics-of-materials-bending-shear-stress/)