Stress is:

Stress is:

• A. The internal resistance, or counterforce, of a material to the distorting effects of an external force or load; the total resistance developed is equal to the external load; expressed in pounds per square inch.
• B. The regular lattice structure.
• C. The shrinkage cavity.
• D. The pores within a material.

Answer: (A)

Stress is the internal reaction of a material to an applied load—the forces that develop inside the material to resist deformation. When a load is applied, the material responds by generating internal forces that oppose the distortion, and under static conditions these internal forces balance the external load. The stress that results is the external force divided by the cross-sectional area, so it is expressed in units of force per area, such as pounds per square inch. Stress can be tensile, compressive, or shear, depending on how the load tries to deform the material. The other terms describe features of the material’s structure or defects (like lattice organization, shrinkage cavities, or pores) and do not define the internal resistance to loading.

Stress is the internal reaction of a material to an applied load—the forces that develop inside the material to resist deformation. When a load is applied, the material responds by generating internal forces that oppose the distortion, and under static conditions these internal forces balance the external load. The stress that results is the external force divided by the cross-sectional area, so it is expressed in units of force per area, such as pounds per square inch. Stress can be tensile, compressive, or shear, depending on how the load tries to deform the material. The other terms describe features of the material’s structure or defects (like lattice organization, shrinkage cavities, or pores) and do not define the internal resistance to loading.