Step 1: Moment of Inertia of a Complete Ring
- The moment of inertia of a complete ring about an axis passing through its center and perpendicular to its plane is:
\[
I_{\text{full}} = M R^2
\]
Step 2: Mass of Removed Arc
- The full ring corresponds to an angular span of \( 360^\circ \).
- The removed arc subtends an angle of \( 15^\circ \), so its mass is:
\[
M_{\text{arc}} = M \times \frac{15}{360} = \frac{M}{24}
\]
Step 3: Moment of Inertia of Removed Arc
- Since mass is uniformly distributed, the moment of inertia of the removed arc is:
\[
I_{\text{arc}} = \frac{M}{24} R^2 = \frac{1}{24} M R^2
\]
Step 4: Moment of Inertia of Remaining Ring
- The moment of inertia of the remaining part is:
\[
I_{\text{remaining}} = I_{\text{full}} - I_{\text{arc}}
\]
\[
= M R^2 - \frac{1}{24} M R^2
\]
\[
= \frac{23}{24} M R^2
\]
Step 5: Conclusion
Since the remaining moment of inertia is \( \frac{23}{24} M R^2 \), Option (1) is correct.