Work and Energy
Work is closely related to energy. The conservation of energy states that the change in total internal energy of a system equals the added heat minus the work performed by the system (see the first law of thermodynamics),
Also, from Newton's second law for rigid bodies it can be shown that work on an object is equal to the change in kinetic energy of that object,
- .
The work of forces generated by a potential function is known as potential energy and the forces are said to be conservative. Therefore work on an object moving in a conservative force field is equal to minus the change of potential energy of the object,
This shows that work is the energy associated with the action of a force, and so has the physical dimensions and units of energy.
The work energy principle discussed here is identical in the case of Electrical work.
Read more about this topic: Work (physics)
Famous quotes containing the words work and/or energy:
“Whether outside work is done by choice or not, whether women seek their identity through work, whether women are searching for pleasure or survival through work, the integration of motherhood and the world of work is a source of ambivalence, struggle, and conflict for the great majority of women.”
—Sara Lawrence Lightfoot (20th century)
“The scholar may be sure that he writes the tougher truth for the calluses on his palms. They give firmness to the sentence. Indeed, the mind never makes a great and successful effort, without a corresponding energy of the body.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)