Unit Topics:
- Work
- Kinetic Energy and the Work-Energy Theorem
- Potential Energy: Gravitational and Elastic
- Mechanical Energy and its Conservation
- Power
- How are humans dependent upon transformations of energy?
- If you hold an object while you walk at a constant velocity, are you doing work on the object? Why or why not?
- What factors affect the collision of two objects, and how can you determine whether the collision is elastic or inelastic?
- How can energy be represented with graphs and equations?
- What does it mean for energy to be conserved?
- How are the different modes of energy storage transformed within a system and transferred between a system and the environment?
AP Learning Objectives
BIG IDEA 3: The interactions of an object with other objects can be described by forces.
3.E.1.1: The student is able to make predictions about the changes in kinetic energy of an object based on considerations of the direction of the net force on the object as the object moves. [SP 6.4, 7.2]
3.E.1.2: The student is able to use net force and velocity vectors to determine qualitatively whether kinetic energy of an object would increase, decrease, or remain unchanged. [SP 1.4]
3.E.1.3: The student is able to use force and velocity vectors to determine qualitatively or quantitatively the net force exerted on an object and qualitatively whether kinetic energy of that object would increase, decrease, or remain unchanged. [SP 1.4, 2.2]
3.E.1.4: The student is able to apply mathematical routines to determine the change in kinetic energy of an object given the forces on the object and the displacement of the object. [SP 2.2]
BIG IDEA 4: Interactions between systems can result in changes in those systems.
4.C.1.1: The student is able to calculate the total energy of a system and justify the mathematical routines used in the calculation of component types of energy within the system whose sum is the total energy. [SP 1.4, 2.1, 2.2]
4.C.1.2: The student is able to predict changes in the total energy of a system due to changes in position and speed of objects or frictional interactions within the system. [SP 6.4]
4.C.2.1: The student is able to make predictions about the changes in the mechanical energy of a system when a component of an external force acts parallel or antiparallel to the direction of the displacement of the center of mass. [SP 6.4]
4.C.2.2: The student is able to apply the concepts of Conservation of Energy and the Work-Energy theorem to determine qualitatively and/or quantitatively that work done on a two-object system in linear motion will change the kinetic energy of the center of mass of the system, the potential energy of the systems, and/or the internal energy of the system. [SP 1.4, 2.2, 7.2]
BIG IDEA 5: Changes that occur as a result of interactions are constrained by conservation laws.
5.A.2.1: The student is able to define open and closed systems for everyday situations and apply conservation concepts for energy, charge, and linear momentum to those situations. [SP 6.4, 7.2]
5.B.1.1: The student is able to set up a representation or model showing that a single object can only have kinetic energy and use information about that object to calculate its kinetic energy. [SP 1.4, 2.2]
5.B.1.2: The student is able to translate between a representation of a single object, which can only have kinetic energy, and a system that includes the object, which may have both kinetic and potential energies. [SP 1.5]
5.B.2.1: The student is able to calculate the expected behavior of a system using the object model (i.e., by ignoring changes in internal structure) to analyze a situation. Then, when the model fails, the student can justify the use of conservation of energy principles to calculate the change in internal energy due to changes in internal structure because the object is actually a system. [SP 1.4, 2.1]
5.B.3.1: The student is able to describe and make qualitative and/or quantitative predictions about everyday examples of systems with internal potential energy. [SP 2.2, 6.4, 7.2]
5.B.3.2: The student is able to make quantitative calculations of the internal potential energy of a system from a description or diagram of that system. [SP 1.4, 2.2]
5.B.3.3: The student is able to apply mathematical reasoning to create a description of the internal potential energy of a system from a description or diagram of the objects and interactions in that system. [SP 1.4, 2.2]
5.B.4.1: The student is able to describe and make predictions about the internal energy of systems. [SP 6.4, 7.2]
5.B.4.2: The student is able to calculate changes in kinetic energy and potential energy of a system, using information from representations of that system. [SP 1.4, 2.1, 2.2]
5.B.5.1: The student is able to design an experiment and analyze data to examine how a force exerted on an object or system does work on the object or system as it moves through a distance. [SP 4.2, 5.1]
5.B.5.2: The student is able to design an experiment and analyze graphical data in which interpretations of the area under a force-distance curve are needed to determine the work done on or by the object or system. [SP 4.2, 5.1]
5.B.5.3: The student is able to predict and calculate from graphical data the energy transfer to or work done on an object or system from information about a force exerted on the object or system through a distance. [SP 1.4, 2.2, 6.4]
5.B.5.4: The student is able to make claims about the interaction between a system and its environment in which the environment exerts a force on the system, thus doing work on the system and changing the energy of the system (kinetic energy plus potential energy). [SP 6.4, 7.2]
5.B.5.5: The student is able to predict and calculate the energy transfer to (i.e., the work done on) an object or system from information about a force exerted on the object or system through a distance. [SP 2.2, 6.4]
5.D.1.1: The student is able to make qualitative predictions about natural phenomena based on conservation of linear momentum and restoration of kinetic energy in elastic collisions. [SP 6.4, 7.2]
5.D.1.2: The student is able to apply the principles of conservation of momentum and restoration of kinetic energy to reconcile a situation that appears to be isolated and elastic, but in which data indicate that linear momentum and kinetic energy are not the same after the interaction, by refining a scientific question to identify interactions that have not been considered. Students will be expected to solve qualitatively and/or quantitatively for one-dimensional situations and only qualitatively in two-dimensional situations. [SP 2.2, 3.2, 5.1, 5.3]
5.D.1.3: The student is able to apply mathematical routines appropriately to problems involving elastic collisions in one dimension and justify the selection of those mathematical routines based on conservation of momentum and restoration of kinetic energy. [SP 2.1, 2.2]
5.D.1.4: The student is able to design an experimental test of an application of the principle of the conservation of linear momentum, predict an outcome of the experiment using the principle, analyze data generated by that experiment whose uncertainties are expressed numerically, and evaluate the match between the prediction and the outcome. [SP 4.2, 5.1, 5.3, 6.4]
5.D.1.5: The student is able to classify a given collision situation as elastic or inelastic, justify the selection of conservation of linear momentum and restoration of kinetic energy as the appropriate principles for analyzing an elastic collision, solve for missing variables, and calculate their values. [SP 2.1, 2.2]
5.D.2.1: The student is able to qualitatively predict, in terms of linear momentum and kinetic energy, how the outcome of a collision between two objects changes depending on whether the collision is elastic or inelastic. [SP 6.4, 7.2]
5.D.2.3: The student is able to apply the conservation of linear momentum to a closed system of objects involved in an inelastic collision to predict the change in kinetic energy. [SP 6.4, 7.2]
BIG IDEA 3: The interactions of an object with other objects can be described by forces.
3.E.1.1: The student is able to make predictions about the changes in kinetic energy of an object based on considerations of the direction of the net force on the object as the object moves. [SP 6.4, 7.2]
3.E.1.2: The student is able to use net force and velocity vectors to determine qualitatively whether kinetic energy of an object would increase, decrease, or remain unchanged. [SP 1.4]
3.E.1.3: The student is able to use force and velocity vectors to determine qualitatively or quantitatively the net force exerted on an object and qualitatively whether kinetic energy of that object would increase, decrease, or remain unchanged. [SP 1.4, 2.2]
3.E.1.4: The student is able to apply mathematical routines to determine the change in kinetic energy of an object given the forces on the object and the displacement of the object. [SP 2.2]
BIG IDEA 4: Interactions between systems can result in changes in those systems.
4.C.1.1: The student is able to calculate the total energy of a system and justify the mathematical routines used in the calculation of component types of energy within the system whose sum is the total energy. [SP 1.4, 2.1, 2.2]
4.C.1.2: The student is able to predict changes in the total energy of a system due to changes in position and speed of objects or frictional interactions within the system. [SP 6.4]
4.C.2.1: The student is able to make predictions about the changes in the mechanical energy of a system when a component of an external force acts parallel or antiparallel to the direction of the displacement of the center of mass. [SP 6.4]
4.C.2.2: The student is able to apply the concepts of Conservation of Energy and the Work-Energy theorem to determine qualitatively and/or quantitatively that work done on a two-object system in linear motion will change the kinetic energy of the center of mass of the system, the potential energy of the systems, and/or the internal energy of the system. [SP 1.4, 2.2, 7.2]
BIG IDEA 5: Changes that occur as a result of interactions are constrained by conservation laws.
5.A.2.1: The student is able to define open and closed systems for everyday situations and apply conservation concepts for energy, charge, and linear momentum to those situations. [SP 6.4, 7.2]
5.B.1.1: The student is able to set up a representation or model showing that a single object can only have kinetic energy and use information about that object to calculate its kinetic energy. [SP 1.4, 2.2]
5.B.1.2: The student is able to translate between a representation of a single object, which can only have kinetic energy, and a system that includes the object, which may have both kinetic and potential energies. [SP 1.5]
5.B.2.1: The student is able to calculate the expected behavior of a system using the object model (i.e., by ignoring changes in internal structure) to analyze a situation. Then, when the model fails, the student can justify the use of conservation of energy principles to calculate the change in internal energy due to changes in internal structure because the object is actually a system. [SP 1.4, 2.1]
5.B.3.1: The student is able to describe and make qualitative and/or quantitative predictions about everyday examples of systems with internal potential energy. [SP 2.2, 6.4, 7.2]
5.B.3.2: The student is able to make quantitative calculations of the internal potential energy of a system from a description or diagram of that system. [SP 1.4, 2.2]
5.B.3.3: The student is able to apply mathematical reasoning to create a description of the internal potential energy of a system from a description or diagram of the objects and interactions in that system. [SP 1.4, 2.2]
5.B.4.1: The student is able to describe and make predictions about the internal energy of systems. [SP 6.4, 7.2]
5.B.4.2: The student is able to calculate changes in kinetic energy and potential energy of a system, using information from representations of that system. [SP 1.4, 2.1, 2.2]
5.B.5.1: The student is able to design an experiment and analyze data to examine how a force exerted on an object or system does work on the object or system as it moves through a distance. [SP 4.2, 5.1]
5.B.5.2: The student is able to design an experiment and analyze graphical data in which interpretations of the area under a force-distance curve are needed to determine the work done on or by the object or system. [SP 4.2, 5.1]
5.B.5.3: The student is able to predict and calculate from graphical data the energy transfer to or work done on an object or system from information about a force exerted on the object or system through a distance. [SP 1.4, 2.2, 6.4]
5.B.5.4: The student is able to make claims about the interaction between a system and its environment in which the environment exerts a force on the system, thus doing work on the system and changing the energy of the system (kinetic energy plus potential energy). [SP 6.4, 7.2]
5.B.5.5: The student is able to predict and calculate the energy transfer to (i.e., the work done on) an object or system from information about a force exerted on the object or system through a distance. [SP 2.2, 6.4]
5.D.1.1: The student is able to make qualitative predictions about natural phenomena based on conservation of linear momentum and restoration of kinetic energy in elastic collisions. [SP 6.4, 7.2]
5.D.1.2: The student is able to apply the principles of conservation of momentum and restoration of kinetic energy to reconcile a situation that appears to be isolated and elastic, but in which data indicate that linear momentum and kinetic energy are not the same after the interaction, by refining a scientific question to identify interactions that have not been considered. Students will be expected to solve qualitatively and/or quantitatively for one-dimensional situations and only qualitatively in two-dimensional situations. [SP 2.2, 3.2, 5.1, 5.3]
5.D.1.3: The student is able to apply mathematical routines appropriately to problems involving elastic collisions in one dimension and justify the selection of those mathematical routines based on conservation of momentum and restoration of kinetic energy. [SP 2.1, 2.2]
5.D.1.4: The student is able to design an experimental test of an application of the principle of the conservation of linear momentum, predict an outcome of the experiment using the principle, analyze data generated by that experiment whose uncertainties are expressed numerically, and evaluate the match between the prediction and the outcome. [SP 4.2, 5.1, 5.3, 6.4]
5.D.1.5: The student is able to classify a given collision situation as elastic or inelastic, justify the selection of conservation of linear momentum and restoration of kinetic energy as the appropriate principles for analyzing an elastic collision, solve for missing variables, and calculate their values. [SP 2.1, 2.2]
5.D.2.1: The student is able to qualitatively predict, in terms of linear momentum and kinetic energy, how the outcome of a collision between two objects changes depending on whether the collision is elastic or inelastic. [SP 6.4, 7.2]
5.D.2.3: The student is able to apply the conservation of linear momentum to a closed system of objects involved in an inelastic collision to predict the change in kinetic energy. [SP 6.4, 7.2]