Question

Which of the following statements is/are true? Check all that apply. Check all that apply. The total mechanical energy of a system is constant only if all the forces doing work on it are nonconservative. The total mechanical energy of a system is constant only if all the forces doing work on it are conservative. The total mechanical energy of a system is equally divided between kinetic and potential energy. Mechanical energy can be dissipated to nonmechanical forms of energy. The total mechanical energy of a system, at any one instant, is either all kinetic or all potential energy.

Answer 1

True statements include: mechanical energy is constant if all forces are conservative, and mechanical energy can be dissipated into nonmechanical forms. The division of mechanical energy into kinetic and potential does not have to be equal, and it can be a combination of both types.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question revolves around the concepts of mechanical energy and the conservation of energy in physics. The statements presented touch upon various circumstances under which mechanical energy is conserved and how it can be transformed into other forms of energy.

Here are the true statements based on the given concepts:

• The total mechanical energy of a system is constant only if all the forces doing work on it are conservative. This implies that no energy is lost to the surroundings as heat or other forms of non-mechanical energy.
• Mechanical energy can be dissipated to nonmechanical forms of energy. This can occur due to non-conservative forces, such as friction or air resistance, doing work on the system.

The other statements are not generally true. The division of mechanical energy into kinetic and potential energy does not have to be equal, and the total mechanical energy can be a combination of both, not just all of one type or the other.