Fruit Mass (kg) Speed (m/s)
Watermelon A 4 2
Watermelon B 4 4
Two watermelons fall off a kitchen counter. The masses and speeds of the fruits are in the table. How do the kinetic and/or the potential energies of the fruits compare?
A. Both fruits have only potential energy and no kinetic energy.
B. The watermelon B has more kinetic energy.
C. The watermelon A has more kinetic energy.
D. Both fruits have the same kinetic and potential energy
The kinetic energy of an object is given by the equation KE = 0.5 * m * v^2, where m is the mass of the object and v is its velocity. The potential energy of an object is given by the equation PE = m * g * h, where m is the mass of the object, g is the acceleration due to gravity, and h is the height of the object above the ground.
In this case, both watermelons have the same mass, so their potential energies are equal. However, the speeds of the watermelons are different. Watermelon B has a higher speed than watermelon A. Using the equation for kinetic energy, we can see that the kinetic energy of watermelon B is greater than the kinetic energy of watermelon A.
Therefore, the correct answer is:
B. The watermelon B has more kinetic energy.