Energy is a very special thing. It does a lot of things for you and me. What does it do exactly? Well...
It helps me get out of bed each morning.
It helps me run, swim, and skip really fast.
It even helps me do my homework
But what is energy? Energy is the ability to do work. This just means the amount it takes to do something. If we do something that means we are using energy!
Energy comes in many different ways. It can come from the sun, the ground, the wind, the water.
Energy is measured in Joules. Not the jewels you find in the Earth, but Joules in energy. The formula or directions to find Joules in energy is Newtons multiplied by meters.
Joules= Newtons x Meters
To solve a Joules problem, you also need this formula GPE=mgh
GPE stands for Gravitational Potential Energy (which you will learn later)
m stands for mass (how much the person weighs)
g stands for gravity (which is always going to be the number 9.8)
h stands for height (how tall you are)
m stands for mass (how much the person weighs)
g stands for gravity (which is always going to be the number 9.8)
h stands for height (how tall you are)
Lets try an example!
A climber is climbing a mountain. The climber weighs 30 kg (mass). The climber goes up 300 meters (height). How much energy in Joules did the climber use?
Using this formula: GPE=mgh
We know that the m=30, the g=9.8, and the h=300
If we multiply them together, we have (30)x(9.8)x(300)
The answer is 88200 Joules! Good Job! WOW that was a big number!
A climber is climbing a mountain. The climber weighs 30 kg (mass). The climber goes up 300 meters (height). How much energy in Joules did the climber use?
Using this formula: GPE=mgh
We know that the m=30, the g=9.8, and the h=300
If we multiply them together, we have (30)x(9.8)x(300)
The answer is 88200 Joules! Good Job! WOW that was a big number!