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Potential and Kinetic Energy

Total questions: 20

Worksheet time: 19mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

What is Energy?

a)

The ability to do anything

b)

The ability to cause change

c)

The investigation of nature

d)

A fact of life

2.

What is an example of kinetic energy?

a)

A bird sitting in a tree

b)

A bouncy ball on the table

c)

A car driving on the highway

d)

A book on shelf

3.

What is an example of potential energy?

a)

A bowling ball rolling down a lane

b)

A car parked in a lot

c)

An apple falling from a tree

d)

Sunlight heating up the atmosphere

4.

Which has more potential energy?

a)

A bird in a tree

b)

A car in the garage

c)

An airplane before takeoff

d)

A child on a swing

5.

Energy cannot be created or destroyed.

a)

True

b)

False

6.

Total energy will always change in a system of objects.

a)

True; energy is destroyed due to friction

b)

False; energy cannot be destroyed, only transferred.

7.

What is thermal energy?

a)

Energy due to electric current

b)

Energy that sound carries

c)

The sum of the potential and kinetic energy of the particles that make up an object.

d)

The energy that electromagnetic waves carry

8.

What is the definition of friction?

a)

A force that resists the sliding of two objects that are touching

b)

A force that increases sliding between two objects

c)

The change from potential to kinetic energy

d)

A transformation from radiant to mechanical energy

9.

Which of the following describes an energy transformation?

a)

When energy is lost due to friction

b)

An electric motor moving a car

c)

A solar panel powering a home

d)

A television projecting a show

10.
At what position does the pendulum have the greatest gravitational potential energy?
a)
Position D
b)
Position C
c)
Position B
11.
At what position does the pendulum have the greatest kinetic energy?
a)
Position D
b)
Position C
c)
Position B
12.
Which character has the greatest gravitational potential energy?
a)
Character A
b)
Character B
c)
Character C
d)
Character D
13.
Which skier has the greatest kinetic energy?
a)
Skier A
b)
Skier B
c)
Skier C
d)
Skier D
14.

Energy transfer is best described as...

a)

The same type of energy that moves from one object to another

b)

When the type of energy changes into another form

15.

One example of energy transfer is...

a)

Your Xbox converting electrical energy into light and sound energy.

b)

Electrical energy from a computer changing to sound and light energy.

c)

Hot coffee in a mug warming the mug and your hands.

d)

Your lamp changing electrical energy to light and thermal energy.

16.

An energy transformation is best be described as...

a)

When the same type of energy moves from one object to another.

b)

When energy changes into a different type of energy.

17.

When you plug in your Xbox, electrical energy is transformed into...

a)

Thermal and chemical energy

b)

Sound and light energy

c)

Light and chemical energy

d)

Thermal and mechanical energy

18.
How does potential energy become kinetic energy?
a)
When something hot touches something cool, the potential energy in the hot object is turned into kinetic energy in the cool object
b)
When an outside force acts upon an object with potential energy, that force turns the potential energy into kinetic energy
c)
Potential energy becomes kinetic when an object remains in place and continues to build up more and more energy
d)
Potential energy has no relation to kinetic energy
19.

A book sitting on a table has potential energy because of the gravitational pull of Earth. Which of the following would increase the potential energy of the book?

a)

Sliding it across the table

b)

Opening it to the middle

c)

Dropping it on the floor

d)

Lifting it to a high shelf

20.

The graph shows the kinetic energy of both a school bus and a pickup truck as they move at various speeds.


Under which of the following conditions can the pickup truck have more kinetic energy than the school bus?

a)

The pickup truck is moving at 1 m/s and the school bus is moving at 2 m/s.

b)

The pickup truck is moving at 4 m/s and the school bus is moving at 2 m/s.

c)

The pickup truck is moving at 2 m/s and the school bus is moving at 3 m/s.

d)

The pickup truck is moving at 4 m/s and the school bus is moving at 3 m/s.