Week 5: Work, Energy and Linear Momentum
Energy plays an essential role both in everyday events and in scientific phenomena. How many forms of energy can you identify in this photograph of a wind farm in Iowa?
Not only does energy have many interesting forms, it is one of the most important concepts of physics. There is no simple and accurate scientific definition for energy but we can loosely define energy as the ability to do work, admitting that in some circumstances not all energy is available to do work.
In this module we will also begin discussing momentum. Have you ever considered why a glass dropped on a tile floor will often break, but a glass dropped on carpet will often remain intact? Both involve changes in momentum. You will learn that the interaction of objects (like a glass and the floor) results in forces, which in turn result in changes in the momentum of each object. You will see how the law of momentum conservation can be applied to a system to help determine the outcome of a collision.
Learning Outcomes:
- Explain how an object must be displaced for a force on it to do work.
- Explain and apply the work-energy theorem.
- Explain gravitational potential energy in terms of work done against gravity.
- Explain the law of the conservation of energy when Hooke’s law applies.
- Apply Newton’s second law of motion in terms of impulse and momentum.
- Apply the principle of conservation of momentum.
To-Do List:
- Review all assigned readings and videos
- Participate in the discussion
- Problem set 5
- Quiz 5
photo credit: Jürgen from Sandesneben, Germany, Wikimedia Commons. Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/college-physics-ap-courses/pages/1-connection-for-ap-r-courses