Chapter 7: Work & Energy

Flashcards covering essential vocabulary and concepts related to Work and Energy from Chapter 7.

Work

The product of force and displacement in some direction.

Conserved quantities

Quantities that remain constant in a closed system.

Scalar

A quantity that only has magnitude, such as work.

EF = 0

The net force acting on a rigid body at constant velocity is zero.

Displacement

The distance moved in a specific direction.

Force does work on an object

Work is done when a force acts on an object to cause displacement.

Units of work (W)

Commonly measured in Joules (N·m), which equal kg·m²/s².

W = Fd cos(θ)

The formula used to calculate work done by a force where θ is the angle between the force and displacement.

Work-energy principle

The principle stating that the total work done on an object is equal to the change in its energy.

Negative work

Occurs when the force and displacement are in opposite directions.

Net work (W_net)

The total work calculated from all different forces acting on an object.

Cosine function in work calculation

Used to determine the component of force that acts in the direction of displacement.

Dot product

A mathematical operation that relates to the scalar product of two vectors.

Rigid bodies

Objects that do not deform under stress or force.

Constant velocity

When an object's speed and direction remain unchanged.