W = mgh Where, W = work done g = acceleration due to gravity h = height of free fall If the angle between gravitational force and direction of motion is 𝚹, then work done due to gravity is given by W = mgh cos 𝚹 So if an object is moving in horizontal direction on the surface of earth, then work done by gravity is 'zero' Example A 5 kg box falls at angle 450 from a height of'Work' is defined as 'force x distance moved (in the direction of the force) Energy is defined such that whenever object A does work on object B, then an amount of energy, ΔE, is transferred from A to B, which is equal to the work done So, WD = F x d, and Δ E = WDFor example, in the equation 5 x 10 = , the unknown quantity is x • To solve an equation means to find all values of the unknown quantity so that they can be substituted to make the left side equal the right side • Each such value is called a solution, or alternatively a root of the equation In the example above, the solution is x = 2 because when 2 is substituted, both
Macroscopic Potential Energy Umass Physics 131 Unit 4 Openstax Cnx
