Thermal (kinetic) energy is the vibration of the molecules of a substance.Common examples include light, sunlight, microwaves, radio waves, and radiant heat emanating in all directions from a fire. Radiant (kinetic) energy is also called "electromagnetic energy." It travels in transverse waves and is produced by anything with a temperature above absolute zero.Electrical (kinetic) energy is "the movement of electrons." The most common example of this is electricity moving through a wire, but discharging static electricity and lightning are also electrical energy.If you see naturally flowing water, it is moving down hill (tides and waves notwithstanding), so hydroelectric energy (electrical energy generated from flowing water) starts out as gravitational potential energy. Gravitational (potential) energy is "energy of position or place." Common examples include water (e.g., in a river) at a high(er) elevation, a ball sitting on top of a hill, and you sitting on your chair right now.Most of the energy used by humans, however, comes from nuclear fusion (fusing of atoms) in the sun. Anything made of matter has nuclear energy, but most of the nuclear energy converted by humans comes from the fission (splitting) of uranium atoms and is used to generate electricity. Nuclear (potential) energy is "stored in the nucleus of atoms," and is what holds the nucleus together.Mechanical (potential) energy is "stored in objects by the application of a force." Common examples include a wound spring, a stretched-out rubber band, and compressed air.Practically speaking, basically everything made of matter has chemical energy. Common examples include the energy stored in food, fossil fuels, and batteries, but anything that is made of more than one atom has chemical energy. Chemical (potential) energy is stored in the bonds between atoms and molecules.Generally, "kinetic" or "potential" is not included.): (Note that the categories are listed in parentheses below because they can either be included or not, e.g., chemical energy can be referred to as "chemical" or "chemical potential" energy. And even if these things are not actually happening, energy provides the ability to make them happen.Īs indicated in the reading, the two categories of energy are potential (stored energy) and kinetic (energy in motion), each of which have several forms. A similar way to think of energy is that it "makes things happen." Energy is required to make a TV turn on, a car to move, the sun to generate light and heat, water to vaporize, plants to add biomass, a power plant to generate electricity, and for you to think about this course content as you read it. 8 - 9)Įnergy is most commonly defined as "the ability to do work." This is a useful technical definition, but from a practical perspective, the NEED Project's indication that energy is also "the ability to produce change" is helpful. Introduction to Energy, National Energy Education Development Project (pp.You are welcome to read the rest, but it is not necessary. Hopefully, much of this will be a review for you! (Note that we will go over more up-to-date energy use data than the document has - i.e., more recent than 2009 - below.). Please read the first two pages of their Introduction to Energy, which provides a good overview of energy. The National Energy Education Development (NEED) Project is a non-profit organization that provides a lot of useful (and free!) information about energy and energy issues. Let’s tackle the second question first, since the answer is a little more straightforward, even if it’s not always easy to grasp: What, exactly, is energy? What forms of energy does it contain?Ĭonsidering that this course is called “Energy and Sustainability in Contemporary Culture,” let’s start by answering two fundamental questions: How are energy conversion and work related? You are looking at an electronic device right now. Briefly describe the following categories and forms of energy: potential, kinetic, chemical, mechanical, nuclear, gravitational, electrical, radiant, thermal, motion, sound energy. What is energy? Identify some things that energy can do. It will also help lay the foundation for future course content. This is to help you reflect on important content and will help you prepare for this week's quiz. I suggest writing or typing out your answers, but if nothing else, say them out loud to yourself. After going through the content, check the boxes next to the questions/statements that you feel at least somewhat confident answering. You should be able to answer all of these after reading through the content on this page. Read through the following statements/questions.
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