All Questions
Tagged with energy potential-energy
480
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When is the internal energy of a system not considered potential energy? [duplicate]
I have seen the total energy of a system, $E$, given in two forms:
$$E = K + U$$
where $K$ is the kinetic energy and $U$ is the potential energy, as well as
$$E = K + U + I$$
where $I$ is the internal ...
0
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4
answers
149
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Work and Energy Theorem - Theoretical Question
The work energy theorem states that for a given object
∆ Kinetic Energy = Work done by all forces ( Conservative, Non Conservative, External )
Here ,
Suppose if ∆KE = 0 , Potential energy has changed
...
1
vote
1
answer
73
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Direct conversion of potential energy into heat
Is it possible for potential energy to be dissipated (converted into heat) without being first converted into kinetic energy? Put differently, are there isolated systems at complete rest which turn ...
1
vote
2
answers
130
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Does infinite time dilation increase a photons energy to collapse to a black hole, and does it do the same for matter?
As I understand the mass of an object doesn't increase in a gravitational field according to general relativity. It just follows a geodesic, its worldline.
Now imagine a small marble falling straight ...
0
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0
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20
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How do you calculate the potential elastic energy in only one of the springs of a series? What about if they were connected in paralel? [duplicate]
Given the elastic constants of 2 springs (k1=125N/m, k2=200N/m), how can you calculate the ratio between the potential elastic energy stored in the first spring (k1) when it is grouped in series with ...
1
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3
answers
134
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Why do things always want to reduce their energy? [duplicate]
Every object wants to reduce its potential energy, but why is that so? Does it have an explanation, or is it just a law we accept?
5
votes
3
answers
2k
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If a car is *accelerating* uphill, does it *gain* kinetic energy?
I had an exam yesterday on physics (9th Grade), there was a question that confused me a lot. It said: "If a Gas Car is accelerating uphill, what happens to its G.P.E and K.E?"
A: It loses ...
0
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1
answer
61
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Conservative force and change in the mechanical energy
Why is work done by a conservative force equal to change in the potential energy only? Why doesn't it account for all mechanical energy, what about kinetic energy?
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1
answer
296
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Negative Energy [duplicate]
I am uneducated on physics so please excuse my ignorance. I've been looking into negative energy which hasn't made much sense to me thus far. Through what I've read I think negative energy is simply ...
0
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3
answers
223
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Why doesn't voltage increase when the wire length increases; there's more work to be done?
This Q&A did not answer my question.
The voltage of a circuit is the difference in each Coulombs potential energy at the negative pole, compared to the positive pole. At the negative pole, there's ...
0
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0
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33
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Is the Kinetic minus potential energy the only type of Lagrangian function? [duplicate]
In Landau-Lifshitz's "Course of Theoretical Physics - Mechanics"
It is told that a lagrangian is a function $\mathcal{L}$ such that the action $S$, defined by:
$$S=\int_{t_0}^{t_1}\mathcal{L}...
0
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1
answer
74
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Is potential energy a real form of energy? [duplicate]
Is potential energy a tangible form of energy that an object possesses due to its position or configuration, or is it simply a concept used to estimate how much energy an object will have in the ...
0
votes
1
answer
48
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Work And Energy: Conceptual Potential Energy Doubt
Our teacher told us that objects store potential energy in them according the position of the object above the ground because of gravitational force.
Like we are holding a box up and it stores ...
2
votes
2
answers
120
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Potential energy of external force
The potential energy is a property of a system, being defined only for internal conservative forces. From the work energy theorem, we have
$$W_{ext} + W_{\text{internal cons. forces}} = \Delta K $$
We ...
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3
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426
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How does gravitational potential energy work in a very large distance?
Consider a thought experiment (that I made when I was in high school) involving a universe with only two objects: a massive planet and a small asteroid. Initially, they are millions of light-years ...