Final answer:
The person at the greatest height or furthest from an opposite electric charge has the most potential energy, and potential energy is a property of a system's interactions rather than a singular object.
Step-by-step explanation:
The person who has the most potential energy is the one who is at the greatest height in a gravitational field, or the furthest in an electric field from an opposite charge, depending on which type of potential energy we are discussing. As depicted in Figure 18.21, gravitational potential energy of an object increases with height due to the gravitational attraction of the Earth. Similarly, in an electric field, a positive charge will have more potential energy when it is farther from a negative charge.
It is crucial to understand that potential energy is a property of the interactions within a system, rather than a property inherent to a single object. This potential energy can be converted into kinetic energy as the object moves within the field. With the SI unit for energy being the joule (J), the transformation from potential to kinetic energy follows the principle of conservation of energy, meaning the total mechanical energy of the system remains constant.