Question

A hill has three paths up and sides to a flat summit area that three path Lanks are different but the vertical height from the bottom of the mountain to the top is the same

A) which path would be easiest for a car to claim

B) not including the energy used to overcome the internal friction of the car which path requires the most energy for a car to climb?


I’m just confused on the concept of work. How come work is not affected when there is the same height

Answer 1

1- The lank with the least slope will be the easiest to climb because it will require the least force.

2- All three paths will require the same energy as the work done will be the same in all three cases.

Step-by-step explanation:

1- Work done W = Force x Displacement i.e. W = F × cosФ where 'Ф' is the angle between force and displacement. Smaller the angle least is the force required to climb. Hence the path with least slope will be easier to climb.

2- Since W = F × cosФ as the angle increase cos Ф decrease which means the slope is increase and consequently the force required also increases but the total work done remains the same. Hence the energy required to climb all three Lanks will be the same.