Lucy picks up an object from the floor. How would the potential energy change if Lucy lifts the object above her head a the object's potential energy would decrease be the object's potential energy will be zero. C the object potential energy will stay the same. D the object potential energy will increase.

1 answer

When Lucy lifts an object from the floor to above her head, the potential energy of the object increases. This is because gravitational potential energy is dependent on the height of the object above a reference point (in this case, the floor). The formula for gravitational potential energy (PE) is:

\[ PE = mgh \]

where:

  • \( m \) is the mass of the object,
  • \( g \) is the acceleration due to gravity, and
  • \( h \) is the height above the reference point.

As Lucy lifts the object, the height \( h \) increases, leading to an increase in potential energy.

Thus, the correct answer is D: the object's potential energy will increase.