Overview:
This page will go over some of the prior knowledge you should be familiar with before tackling the more difficult aspects of this topic.
Definitions
Energy- is a measure of the capacity to do work.
Work- is the energy transferred by a force (when a force moves through a distance).
Both have the SI unit of joule (J).
Power- is the rate of doing work (J/s or W).
Scalar - (of a quantity) having only magnitude, not direction.
Vector- a quantity having direction as well as magnitude, especially as determining the position of one point in space relative to another.
Hooke's law- a law stating that the strain in a solid is proportional to the applied stress within the elastic limit of that solid.
Mass spring system- A mass vibrating at the end of a spring loses kinetic energy in stretching the spring but the spring then posses potential or strain energy. When the motion is reversed and the spring is acting on the mass the strain energy is transferred to the mass as kinetic energy of motion.
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Summary
Conservation of Energy
Energy can be stores transferred or dissipated. However, importantly the Law conservation of Energy states "Energy is neither created nor destroyed, it only changes form".