Question 8
A wide vessel and a narrow vessel are each filled with water to the same height. What can be said about the pressure the water produces at the base of each?
The right answer is the one marked above.
The pressures are equal. P = hρg contains only the height, the density and g — and all three are the same in both, so the pressures are the same.
The wide vessel holds more water and so exerts a greater force on its base — but that force is spread over a larger area, so the pressure comes out the same.