Question

When you drop a rubber ball on the floor it bounces almost to its original height. what causes the ball to bounce?

Answer 1

The ball bounces due to the conservation of energy. When it hits the floor, some of the kinetic energy is transferred to the floor, but the remaining kinetic energy causes the ball to bounce back.

Step-by-step explanation:

When a rubber ball is dropped on the floor, it bounces almost to its original height due to the conservation of energy. The ball initially has gravitational potential energy due to its height, which is converted into kinetic energy as it falls. When the ball hits the floor, some of the kinetic energy is transferred to the floor as thermal energy and sound energy. However, the remaining kinetic energy causes the ball to compress and deform briefly, and then extend upwards, resulting in the ball bouncing back.

Answer 2

It is probably the stored elastic energy in the ball. The force from acceleration due to gravity is applied to the ground which produces an opposite but equal force which makes it move in the opposite direction back up.