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Lucy and her bike together have a mass of 120 kg. She slows down from 4.5 m/s to 3.5 m/s. How much kinetic energy does she lose?

User Jay Rathod
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1 Answer

5 votes

Answer:

480 Joules

Step-by-step explanation:

Start by listing out your variables.

Mass (m) = 120kg

Initial Velocity (Vi) = 4.5 m/s

Final Velocity (Vf) = 3.5 m/s

Kinetic Energy (KE) = ?

After looking at a Formula Chart, we can determine which equation we can use based on what we need to solve and what variables we have.

In this case, we have the mass, final velocity, and initial velocity, and we're trying to determine the kinetic energy.

With this information, we can use the equation KE = ½ mv^2.

We'll start by plugging in the variables for the initial amount of kinetic energy.

So for KE = ½ mv^2,

KE = ½ (120) (4.5) ^2

KE = 1215

Next, we'll plug in the variables for the final amount of kinetic energy.

So for KE = ½ mv^2,

KE = ½ (120) (3.5) ^2

KE = 735

Lastly, just determine the difference between the final and initial kinetic energy.

1215 - 735 = 480

480 Joules of Kinetic Energy was lost.

User Tenisha
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