eli5: Can any engineers explain second moment of area intuitively?
In: 5
If you have a 2×4 beam and try to bend it so the 2 is the depth it is easier to bend than if the 4 is the depth. The reason being is because the bending moment you are applying is distributed across 4 inches rather than 2, it’s like if you have a pole on a rectangular base that is 2 foot by 4 foot it’s easier to push it over if you push it in the two foot direction rather than the four foot direction.
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