Question

If researchers failed to take into account the effect of air resistance on the pitch, how would it impact their measurements of the efficiency of energy transfer from the arm to the baseball?

A. It would be lower than the actual efficiency, as there was a higher initial velocity at release.

B. It would be higher than the actual efficiency, as there was a higher initial velocity at release.

C. It would be lower than the actual efficiency, as there was a lower initial velocity at release.

D. It would be higher than the actual efficiency, as there was a lower initial velocity at release.

Answer 1

Ignoring air resistance when evaluating the efficiency of energy transfer in pitching a baseball would lead to an overestimation of efficiency because it would appear as if more of the pitcher's energy is converted into the ball's kinetic energy.

Step-by-step explanation:

If researchers fail to account for air resistance when measuring the efficiency of energy transfer from the arm to the baseball, they would likely overestimate the efficiency. This is because air resistance would reduce the velocity of the baseball as it travels through the air, meaning the initial kinetic energy would be partially transformed into heat through air resistance. Thus, not accounting for this would make it appear that a greater proportion of energy is transferred to the baseball's kinetic energy than is actually the case.

The correct answer to this question is A. It would be lower than the actual efficiency, as there was a higher initial velocity at release. This option recognizes that if air resistance is not considered, the loss of energy due to air friction is not accounted for, leading to an overestimation of the transferred energy's contribution to the ball's motion.