Question

Two students are watching a person riding a skate board up and down a ramp. each student shares what they think about the energy of the skate boarder as they ride up and down the ramp.

Elisa: i think the skateboarder has the more total energy at the top bottom of the ramp then the bottom of the ramp

raymond: i think the skateboarder has the same total energy at all points of the ramp
which student do you agree with? why/

Answer 1

I agree with Raymond because total energy is conserved

Step-by-step explanation:

The law of conservation of energy states that energy is neither created nor destroyed, but is transformed from one form to another. As the skateboarder goes up and down the ramp, there is the interconversion of energy between kinetic and potential energy, assuming energy is not lost to heat or other forms of energy.

Kinetic energy is energy in motion, and potential energy is energy at rest. As the skateboarder descends the ramp, the motion increases and the potential energy is converted to kinetic energy, and maximum kinetic energy is attained at the lowest point on the ramp because that is where speed is greatest. However, as the skateboarder ascends the ramp, the kinetic energy decreases progressively and is being converted to potential energy, which is greatest at the top of the ramp, where the skateboarder is momentarily at rest, and speed is zero. Hence at each point on the ramp, total energy is the same.