Energy Lessons

A ball is sitting at the top of a ramp. As the ball rolls down the ramp, the potential energy of the ball decreases. What happens to the potential energy as the ball moves?

• It is lost as gravitational energy.

• It is converted to kinetic energy.

• It is destroyed as the ball moves.

• It is used to make the ball slow down.

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A toy robot can walk and talk and runs on batteries. Which type of energy is stored in the batteries?

• nuclear

• chemical

• electrical

• mechanical

How is mechanical energy calculated?

• by adding potential energy and kinetic energy

• by dividing potential energy by kinetic energy

• by multiplying potential energy and kinetic energy

• by subtracting potential energy from kinetic energy

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Which of these is an example of the conversion of kinetic energy into gravitational potential energy?

• a person walking up a hill

• a person skiing down a hill

• a car racing around an oval track

• a person parachuting out of an airplane

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Which of these statements is an example of energy transfer?

• an open flame heating a pan of water

• a plant using sunlight to create glucose

• turning on a flashlight to create a beam of light

• a child rubbing her hands together to warm them

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The diagram shows a swinging pendulum. During every swing, the pendulum’s speed and position change. Three positions during the swing are identified as Position 1, Position 2, and Position 3.

At which point would most of the pendulum’s potential energy have been turned into kinetic energy?

• Position 1

• Position 2

• Position 3

• The potential and kinetic energies are equal in all positions.

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Which term describes the energy that is stored due to the height of an object above the ground?

• kinetic energy

• chemical energy

• mechanical energy

• gravitational potential energy

A book is sitting on a shelf that is 3.0 meters off the ground. Kinetic energy is found using the formula 1/2 × mass × speed. Potential energy is found by taking mass × g × height, with g as the constant,

9.8 m/s². What is needed to determine the book’s mechanical energy as it sits on the shelf?

• Mass

• speed

• height

• force

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