Middle School Physical Science : Potential and Kinetic Energy
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Example Questions
Example Question #6 : Describe The Relationships Between Kinetic Energy, Mass, And Speed
The equation for Kinetic Energy is: KE = 1/2 mv2. What effect would decreasing the mass have on the velocity assuming that the kinetic energy stays the same?
not enough information
the velocity would decrease
the velocity would stay the same
the velocity would increase
the velocity would decrease
The velocity would decrease because mass and velocity are inversely related.
The equation for Kinetic Energy is: KE = 1/2 mv2. Kinetic energy has a direct relationship with mass, meaning that as mass increases so does the Kinetic Energy of an object. The same is true of velocity. However, mass and velocity are indirectly related. Objects with greater mass can have more kinetic energy even if they are moving more slowly, and objects moving at much greater speeds can have more kinetic energy even if they have less mass. We must consider both the speed and mass of objects when considering the outcomes of collisions.
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