Physics Lab
Physics Lab
  Complete and Continue  

Types of Energy

"Energy" is one of those words that we use a lot in everyday life. If we're tired we might say we don't have enough energy to do something. Maybe we grab an energy drink to feel more alert. Or if we go to a sporting event we might talk about the energy in the stadium.

But when we talk about energy in physics, it means something very specific and measureable. There are many different forms of energy such as kinetic, potential, thermal, sound, light, and more. A car driving on a road has energy due to its motion. A car at the top of a hill has more potential energy than a car at the bottom of a hill due to the difference in height. The gasoline in the car has chemical energy due to the chemical bonds between its atoms.

We'll learn about forms of mechanical energy and how to calculate them:

  • Kinetic energy - the energy of an object due to its linear or translational motion
  • Rotational kinetic energy - the energy of an object due to its rotational motion
  • Gravitational potential energy - the energy of an object due to its position in a gravitational field
  • Elastic or spring potential energy - the energy stored in a spring due to its change in length

We'll also touch on other types of non-mechanical energy: thermal energy, sound energy, light energy, chemical energy and electrical energy.

But... what actually is energy? At its core, energy is just a numerical value that, when added up, appears to be constant over time (we'll learn more about the law of conservation of energy in the next lesson). There doesn't seem to be some energy "thing" that we can observe the same way we observe physical objects. But we can still understand, calculate, and solve problems involving energy without getting too philosophical about it.

Study guide with the variables, equations and examples of kinetic energy and rotational kinetic energy
Study guide with the variables, equations and examples of gravitational potential energy
Study guide with the variables, equations and examples of spring potential energy or elastic potential energy
Study guide with examples of mechanical energy, non-mechanical energy, thermal energy, sound energy, light energy, chemical energy and electrical energy
4

1. Kinetic Energy

2. Gravitational Potential Energy

3. Spring (Elastic) Potential Energy

Explore this topic

Kinetic Energy and Rotational Kinetic Energy
Gravitational Potential Energy
Spring (Elastic) Potential Energy
2

Multiple-Choice Questions

AP Physics 1 multiple choice questions (MCQ) for kinetic energy and potential energy

Answers

Answer and solutions for the AP Physics 1 multiple choice questions (MCQ) for kinetic energy and potential energy

1

"Energy" is one of those words that we use a lot in everyday life. If we're tired we might say we don't have enough energy to do something. Maybe we grab an energy drink to feel more alert. Or if we go to a sporting event we might talk about the energy in the stadium.

But when we talk about energy in physics, it means something very specific and measureable. There are many different forms of energy such as kinetic, potential, thermal, sound, light, and more. A car driving on a road has energy due to its motion. A car at the top of a hill has more potential energy than a car at the bottom of a hill due to the difference in height. The gasoline in the car has chemical energy due to the chemical bonds between its atoms.

We'll learn about forms of mechanical energy and how to calculate them:

  • Kinetic energy - the energy of an object due to its linear or translational motion
  • Rotational kinetic energy - the energy of an object due to its rotational motion
  • Gravitational potential energy - the energy of an object due to its position in a gravitational field
  • Elastic or spring potential energy - the energy stored in a spring due to its change in length

We'll also touch on other types of non-mechanical energy: thermal energy, sound energy, light energy, chemical energy and electrical energy.

But... what actually is energy? At its core, energy is just a numerical value that, when added up, appears to be constant over time (we'll learn more about the law of conservation of energy in the next lesson). There doesn't seem to be some energy "thing" that we can observe the same way we observe physical objects. But we can still understand, calculate, and solve problems involving energy without getting too philosophical about it.

Preview of the study guides for kinetic energy, rotational kinetic energy, gravitational potential energy and spring potential energy
Preview of the AP Physics 1 multiple choice questions (MCQ) for kinetic energy, rotational kinetic energy, gravitational potential energy and spring potential energy

1. Kinetic Energy

2. Gravitational Potential Energy

3. Spring (Elastic) Potential Energy

Explore this topic

Complete and Continue  
Comments

0 comments