Potential & Kinetic Energy

The following diagram of a pendulum shows the path it takes as it swings back and forth.As the pendulum moves from point 2 to point 3, what happens to its mechanical energy?

Kinetic energy is converted to potential energy only once.

Two identical springs (x and y) are stretched to different lengths and held there.

Spring x has more elastic potential energy.

A small car is traveling at a speed of 60 mph on the highway. In the next lane, a large passenger bus is traveling at the same speed. Which of the following is true?

The bus has more kinetic energy than the car.

Joshua hooks a rubber band between his thumb and forefinger. He moves his fingers apart, stretching the rubber band.With a quick, sudden motion, he bends his thumb forward so that the rubber band slips off. What happens next?

The elastic potential energy stored in the stretched rubber band changes to kinetic energy.

Some skateboarders use a structure called a half-pipe, like the one shown below, to perform impressive tricks.Cody is about to drop into the half-pipe on his skateboard. Four positions in the half-pipe are marked with blue circles. At which position will Cody's kinetic energy be the greatest?

The middle dot

Cody is about to drop into the half-pipe on his skateboard. Four positions in the half-pipe are marked with blue circles. At which position will Cody's potential energy be the greatest?

The very last point

A diagram of a roller-coaster track is shown below. Select the position on the track at which a roller-coaster car has the most gravitational potential energy.

The very top dote

A dam is a structure built across a river to hold back the river's water. The flow of water through a dam is controlled by gates. When the gates are closed, water is held at a greater height than it would otherwise occupy.

The water has ( gravitational potential) energy when the gates are closed due to its height. This energy is transformed into ( kinetic) energy when the gates open and the water begins to flow downward.

Which of the following objects has the most kinetic energy?

a car going 60 miles per hour

A chunk of coal has a substantial amount of chemical potential energy. This image is courtesy of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. If released, the chemical potential energy will cause the coal atoms and molecules to vibrate violently, and this internal kinetic energy can be transferred to other nearby objects. Which of these is the best way to transform this chemical potential energy into internal kinetic energy?

burn the coal

Kinetic energy is the energy of motion. How could you determine how much kinetic energy an object has?

by finding its mass and speed

Before a ball rolls down a hill, it has gravitational potential energy. Before a rubber ball bounces away from a surface, it has elastic potential energy. From the list below, select the type of potential energy that allows you to throw a ball.

chemical potential energy

An electric lamp creates light by forcing electrons through the filament of its light bulb. The kinetic energy of the moving electrons comes directly from

electric potential energy.

Which of the following is the correct definition of chemical energy?

energy stored in chemical bonds of molecules

Clyde and Marilyn are riding a roller coaster. During which section(s) of the track is their potential energy converted to kinetic energy?

from point A to point B and from point C to point D

Potential energy that is related to an object's height above the ground is known as ________ potential energy.

gravitational

Sam is about to drop a golf ball from his hand. As the ball falls, its _______ energy will decrease and its _________ energy will increase.

gravitational, kinetic

The Cub Scouts are having their annual Pinewood Derby Race. The unpowered soap box racers, like the one shown below, are lined up at the top of a hill and ready to begin.What gives the cars their potential energy?

gravity

A baseball is dropped off of the side of a building. Ignore the effects of air resistance. As the ball continues to fall freely, the kinetic energy of the ball

increases

energy is defined as the energy of motion.

kinetic

Lance is standing in the batting cage and swings the bat. As he swings, the end of the bat gains speed and _____________.

kinetic energy

Niagara Falls is a set of very large waterfalls located on the border between New York and Ontario, Canada. Over 200,000 cubic feet of fast-moving water falls approximately 180 feet every second. Water at the top of the Falls possesses

kinetic energy and gravitational potential energy.

Mechanical energy is the energy due to the and of an object.

motion and positions

Chemical energy is a form of

potential energy only.

Tyler stretches a rubber band so that it is tight. The stretched rubber band has

potential energy.

Amy is at basketball practice. She is about to shoot a free throw. When Amy releases the ball,

the ball will have kinetic energy and potential energy.

If an object is moving, the amount of kinetic energy it has directly depends upon which of the following factors?

the mass and velocity

A black squirrel is sitting on the ground. A red squirrel is sitting on a tree branch high above the black squirrel. Both squirrels have the same mass.Compared to the red squirrel, the black squirrel has ____________ kinetic energy and __________ gravitational potential energy.

the same, less

When an object is lifted 12 feet off the ground, it gains a certain amount of potential energy. If the same object is lifted 24 feet off the ground, its potential energy is _____.

twice as much

When an object is lifted 6 feet off the ground, it gains a certain amount of potential energy. If the same object is lifted 12 feet off the ground, its potential energy is _____.

twice as much

Which of the following is an example of kinetic energy being converted to potential energy?

A bike rider stops pedaling and lets his bicycle coast up a hill.

Hank, Ryan, Stu, and Ted are each the same mass and are parachuting through the air after having jumped from the same height.Who has transferred the most kinetic energy to his surroundings?

Hank

Mr. Phillips' car is parked on a steep hill with the brakes applied and the engine off. Because of the car's position, it has gravitational potential energy.How could this gravitational potential energy be transformed into kinetic energy?

He could release the brakes.

Gravitational potential energy is dependent upon

weight and height

_______ energy is defined as stored energy.

Potential