A student is investigating energy transfer from potential to kinetic energy using a toy car on a ramp. The student place the toy car at the top of the ramp, releases it, and records how far the car travels. The student's setup is shown.

Question

There is a toy car sitting on top of a ramp the part of the ramp that goes downward is 45 degrees

Which statement best describes what would happen if the student increased the angle of the ramp?

A. The toy car would travel farther because more kinetic energy would be transferred into potential energy.

B. The toy car would travel farther because more potential energy would be transferred into kinetic energy.

C. The toy car would not travel as far because more potential energy would be transferred into kinetic energy.

D. The toy car would not travel as far because more kinetic energy would be transferred into potential energy.

Answer 1

The best statement that describes what would happen if the student increased the angle of the ramp is:

B. The toy car would travel farther because more potential energy would be transferred into kinetic energy.

When the ramp’s angle is increased, the height from which the car is released is greater, leading to an increase in the potential energy at the top of the ramp. As the car rolls down the ramp, this potential energy is converted into kinetic energy. A steeper ramp allows for a quicker conversion of potential energy to kinetic energy, which would typically result in greater speeds at the bottom of the ramp and potentially a longer distance traveled once the car exits the ramp.