Two metals of equal mass, A and B, both at a temperature of 25 degrees celsius, are placed in separate but identical beakers of cold water. Metal A has a larger specific heat than metal B. Metal A is in Beaker 1, and metal B is in Beaker 2. Which beaker (if any) will exhibit a greater change in temperature, and why?

Why don't you make up a number for mass, say an easy one like 10 grams, make up a number for specific heat (say 10 and 20), and calculate delta T for each. Then you will know which will change the most.

To determine which beaker will exhibit a greater change in temperature, we need to understand the concept of specific heat.

Specific heat is the amount of heat energy required to raise the temperature of a material by one unit of mass. It is measured in units of energy per unit of mass per degree temperature change, such as J/g°C.

Given that metal A has a larger specific heat than metal B, it means that it requires more heat energy to raise the temperature of metal A by the same amount compared to metal B.

Now, when both metals are placed in identical beakers of cold water, the beakers will absorb heat from the metals until an equilibrium is reached. The heat energy will transfer from the metals to the water until they have the same final temperature.

However, since metal A has a larger specific heat, it will transfer more heat energy to the water compared to metal B for the same change in temperature. This means that metal A will cool down more (exhibit a greater change in temperature) compared to metal B.

Therefore, the beaker containing metal A (Beaker 1) will exhibit a greater change in temperature compared to the beaker containing metal B (Beaker 2) because of metal A's larger specific heat.