Work, Power, and Energy
Experiment 4: Work, Power and Energy
Maria Isabela Mendoza, Carmela Miranda, Arianne Nagrampa, and Vivien Oreo
Department of Biological Sciences
University of Santo Tomas
España, Manila, Philippines
Abstract
The experiment performed involved work, power and energy. On the first activity, the time it took for each member to go up and down the stairs was recorded. Afterwards, the work and power done were computed. The most powerful member in the group was student number 2 with power outputs of 239.4 W and 266.0 W when going up and down respectively. On the second activity, the graphs of the potential energy vs. time, kinetic energy vs. time, and mechanical energy vs. time of a ball thrown vertically were all predicted. Finally, the ball was tossed on the motion detector and the graphs of potential, kinetic, and mechanical energies vs. time were all produced using the Logger Pro.
Introduction
Work is said to be an act of exerting force. Whatever it is that can make us tired is considered work. The similarity between the conventional meaning and the mathematical meaning of Work is movement. Mathematically, work is defined as W = Fd, where F is the magnitude of the force applied and d is the displacement of the object where force was applied on. Work can be positive or negative; this is due to the positive or negative nature of F and d. When work is positive, this implies that the F and d are of the same sign. This means that the mechanical energy is increased by work in the object. Work is negative when either the value of F or d is negative. This implies that the mechanical energy is lost.
Mathematically speaking, Power is the rate at which energy is transmitted. In everyday life, we can explain power through the function of the things around us. The mere action of turning the light on demonstrates power. The unit for power or P is joule per second (watt) which directly means W done per second.
Energy is everywhere, in our bodies and out in the environment. The
Maria Isabela Mendoza, Carmela Miranda, Arianne Nagrampa, and Vivien Oreo
Department of Biological Sciences
University of Santo Tomas
España, Manila, Philippines
Abstract
The experiment performed involved work, power and energy. On the first activity, the time it took for each member to go up and down the stairs was recorded. Afterwards, the work and power done were computed. The most powerful member in the group was student number 2 with power outputs of 239.4 W and 266.0 W when going up and down respectively. On the second activity, the graphs of the potential energy vs. time, kinetic energy vs. time, and mechanical energy vs. time of a ball thrown vertically were all predicted. Finally, the ball was tossed on the motion detector and the graphs of potential, kinetic, and mechanical energies vs. time were all produced using the Logger Pro.
Introduction
Work is said to be an act of exerting force. Whatever it is that can make us tired is considered work. The similarity between the conventional meaning and the mathematical meaning of Work is movement. Mathematically, work is defined as W = Fd, where F is the magnitude of the force applied and d is the displacement of the object where force was applied on. Work can be positive or negative; this is due to the positive or negative nature of F and d. When work is positive, this implies that the F and d are of the same sign. This means that the mechanical energy is increased by work in the object. Work is negative when either the value of F or d is negative. This implies that the mechanical energy is lost.
Mathematically speaking, Power is the rate at which energy is transmitted. In everyday life, we can explain power through the function of the things around us. The mere action of turning the light on demonstrates power. The unit for power or P is joule per second (watt) which directly means W done per second.
Energy is everywhere, in our bodies and out in the environment. The
References: Serway, R., & Vuille, C. (2012). Physics Fundamentals 1. Pasig: Cengage Learning.