What is the effect of increasing the length of the lever arm?

Increasing the length of the lever arm has a significant impact on the mechanical advantage of a lever system. The longer the lever arm, the more torque is generated with the same amount of effort applied. Torque is the product of force and the distance from the pivot point (fulcrum) to where the force is applied. As this distance increases, a smaller amount of force is required to lift the same load, thereby decreasing the effort needed.

This principle is rooted in the law of the lever, which states that a lever can balance two weights if the product of the load and its distance from the fulcrum is equal to the product of the effort and its distance from the fulcrum. Thus, by increasing the length of the lever arm, you effectively increase the mechanical advantage, allowing less force to be necessary to lift a weight, making it easier to do so.