Question

A car, travelling at constant speed on a straight, level road, accelerates so that its speed is now doubled. By what factor will the car's kinetic energy change? Explain by using physics

principles

Answer 1

We know that, the kinetic energy

ke= \frac{1 }{2} m{v}^{2}

and we also know that the acceleration causes the speed's value to be doubled

Hence, v becomes 2v

When 2v is squared, it becomes 4v^2. After substituting this value in the equation above and comparing it,

We can conclude that the Kinetic Energy has increased

by a factor of 4