Question

When a baseball is tossed upward into the air, how does the nature of the work done by gravity compare to the nature of the work done by air resistance?

A. They are both positive.
B. They are both negative.
C. Gravity does negative work and air resistance does positive work.
D. Air resistance does negative work and gravity does positive work.

Answer 1

Gravity does positive work on the baseball, transferring potential energy to kinetic energy. Air resistance does negative work on the baseball, causing it to lose kinetic energy.The correct option is option d.

Step-by-step explanation:

When a baseball is tossed upward into the air, the nature of the work done by gravity and air resistance differ.

Gravity does positive work on the baseball as it pulls the ball toward the ground. This is because the displacement of the ball is in the opposite direction of the force of gravity. The work done by gravity transfers potential energy to the ball as it moves upward, and then converts this potential energy back to kinetic energy as the ball falls back down.

On the other hand, air resistance does negative work on the baseball. This is because air resistance opposes the motion of the ball through the air, causing the ball to lose kinetic energy. The work done by air resistance is done in the direction opposite to the motion of the ball.