Scientists have a special term for the balancing point of an object. They call it the center of mass. “Mass” refers to... well, it’s really complicated. The mass of an object is usually measured using a scale. If someone asked you how much mass you have, you could give the answer in kilograms or pounds. However, we can’t just say that mass is the same thing as weight. Mass is much trickier than weight. Mass is actually defined as “the measure of an object’s resistance to a change in speed.” You weren’t expecting that, were you?! When you weigh yourself, resistance to speed doesn’t exactly come to mind. Fortunately, this technical definition of mass is not essential to understanding the concept of center of mass. Most of the time when we talk about mass, we can use the word “weight” instead. The difference between mass and weight is explained in the lab titled “Inerita and Mass.” So when we find the center of mass, we are basically finding the center of weight-- the point around which an object will balance. The center of mass is relatively easy to find for a rectangle or circle or triangle. What about an object with a complicated outline? Can you find the center of mass for any shape?