10/26/15
Post date: Oct 26, 2015 9:14:42 PM
We have moved on to our next energy area of study to MECHANICAL ENERGY
Mechanical energy is the energy of movement.
It happens due to FORCES ( pushes and pulls)
WORK happens when the FORCE used actually MOVES something!
Moving your pencil across the page as you write is doing work. So is lifting up your fork to feed yourself.
Pushing against a wall does not do work because the wall does not move! Same with when a fly lands on a sandwich. If the sandwich does not move, then the fly did not do work to move it with a force.
An object will always move in the direction of the FORCE
The more MASS an object has, the more FORCE needed to move it!
A bowling ball needs more force to move it than a small ping pong ball does.
A larger FORCE causes greater MOVEMENT
For example, if you push a cart with a small amount of force, it will not travel very far. However, if you push it with a lot of force, it will move a lot!
There are TWO MAIN FORCES in our world.
Friction: this slows movement down. Smooth surfaces are slippery, they are easier to move on. This is because they do not have a lot of friction. Rough surfaces are hard to move on- they work against the forces moving the object. Rough surfaces have a lot of friction
Gravity: This is a force that pulls down towards the center of the Earth. All things fall towards the center of the Earth. The Moon orbits Earth due to its gravity, and we in turn orbit the Sun to to ITS gravity.
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