Scenario: A farmer comes across a large boulder in their field while plowing. The farmer gets out and attempts to move the rock, but decides it is too difficult to move so they change their plowing pattern to go around the rock.

Question

Was work (physics) done in this scenario?

Answer 1

Yes, work was done in this scenario when the farmer attempted to move the boulder. Work is defined as force acting over a distance, and the farmer exerted a force in an attempt to move the boulder. Even though the farmer was unable to move the boulder, work was still done in the process.