Question

Which force is responsible for supporting the weight of a book placed on a table?

Answer 1

A force is any interaction that causes an object to change its velocity while it is unopposed. A force can cause a mass object to accelerate by changing its velocity (which includes starting to move from a stop). Force is intuitively described as a push or a pull.

Complete step-by-step solution:
Gravity, or weight, is a force exerted on the book by the Earth. The book is subjected to a force known as normal or the normal force, which is exerted by the table.
When a surface pushes against an object put on that surface, the normal force is felt. When a book is placed on a table, for example, the usual force prevents the book from falling through.
The book exerts a normal force on the table rather than a weight load. (The weight of the book operates on the book, not the table.) Because of the first law, it's the same magnitude as the weight of the book.
The normal force prevents a book from falling through a table when it is placed on it. Gravity is pulling the book downward, but since it isn't falling, someone is pushing it upward. The normal force is the name given to this force. The term 'normal' refers to something perpendicular to the surface.

Note: Although the book is subject to gravity, the normal force exerted by the table, which is equal to and opposed to gravity, prevents the book from falling. The third law of motion asserts that when one body produces a force on another, the second body responds with a force of equal size and opposite direction. As a result, there is always a reaction force for every action force. No force can occur by itself.