In the context of bearing capacity, what does the term 'factor of safety' refer to?

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Q: In the context of bearing capacity, what does the term 'factor of safety' refer to?

Solution: The factor of safety is defined as the ratio of the ultimate load to the allowable load, ensuring safety against failure.

Steps: 7

Step 1: Understand that 'bearing capacity' refers to how much load the ground can support without failing.
Step 2: Know that 'failure' means the ground cannot hold the load anymore and may collapse.
Step 3: Learn that 'ultimate load' is the maximum load the ground can handle before failure occurs.
Step 4: Recognize that 'allowable load' is the safe limit of load that can be applied to the ground without risking failure.
Step 5: The 'factor of safety' is a number that shows how much stronger the ground is compared to the load we want to apply.
Step 6: The formula for the factor of safety is: Factor of Safety = Ultimate Load / Allowable Load.
Step 7: A higher factor of safety means more safety against failure.