Question

A student is asked to move a box from ground level to the top of a loading dock platform, as shown in the

figures above. In Figure 1, the student pushes the box up an incline with negligible friction. In Figure 2, the
student lifts the box straight up from ground level to the loading dock platform. In which case does the student
do more work on the box, and why?

Answer 1

The student does more work on the box when pushing it up an incline compared to lifting it straight up due to the longer distance traveled along the incline.

Step-by-step explanation:

In both Figure 1 and Figure 2, the student exerts the same amount of force to move the box to the top of the loading dock platform. However, the work done by the student is different in each case.

In Figure 1, the student pushes the box up an incline. The work done by the student is equal to the force exerted by the student multiplied by the displacement of the box along the incline. Since the box moves along a longer distance in Figure 1, the student does more work on the box.

In Figure 2, the student lifts the box straight up from ground level to the loading dock platform. The work done by the student is equal to the force exerted by the student multiplied by the displacement of the box straight up. Since the box moves along a shorter distance in Figure 2, the student does less work on the box compared to Figure 1.