Question

Part One: Research the Energy Skate Park Basics: Intro Simulation

Instructions:
1. Select the Intro Simulation located at the bottom of the simulation window.
2. Once the Intro Simulation loads, select all of the following from the options located on the right-hand side of your screen:
• U-shaped ramp
• Pie Chart
• Bar Graph
• Grid
• Speed
• Leave the mass on the center setting
3. Then, drag your skater onto the highest part of the U-shaped ramp and select the start arrow to begin. You may use the pause button to stop your skater and the slow motion button to slow the skater down.
Record your data in the chart below using the following terms: increases, decreases, or stays the same.
Position of the Skater on the U-shaped Ramp Amount of Potential Energy Amount of Kinetic Energy Speed Total Energy
1 Moving down the ramp from 6 meters to 4 meters
2 Moving down the ramp from 4 meters to 2 meters
3 Moving up the ramp from 2 meters to 4 meters
4 Moving up the ramp from 4 meters to 6 meters
Complete the questions below. Please write in complete sentences.
1. What is the relationship between potential energy, kinetic energy, and speed as the skater moves down and up the U-shaped ramp?
2. What happens to the total energy as the skater moves down and up the U-shaped ramp?

Answer 1

In the Energy Skate Park Basics simulation, potential energy is converted to kinetic energy as the skater moves down the ramp, and vice versa as the skater moves up. The skater's speed increases or decreases accordingly. The total energy of the system remains constant, demonstrating conservation of energy.

Step-by-step explanation:

The Energy Skate Park Basics simulation provides an opportunity to understand the concepts of kinetic and potential energy, and the conservation of energy in the context of a skating scenario. As the skater moves down and up the U-shaped ramp, potential energy decreases while kinetic energy increases due to the conversion of energy forms. When the skater is moving up the ramp, kinetic energy is converted back into potential energy, thus causing the skater's speed to decrease.

The total energy of the system remains constant throughout the skater's movement, provided there is no friction or external work done on the system. The total energy is the sum of kinetic and potential energy at any given point, which aligns with the principle of conservation of energy stating that energy cannot be created or destroyed, only transformed from one form to another.