You are here:
Careers: Physics/work
Advertisement
Question
why when we calculated the work we multiplied force * distance not F/D i.e division what is the meaning
Hi,
it's because it nature works in such a way that if you lift something up above your head, you must pay more energy (energy is work) than when you lift it a little bit. The MORE you work, the FARTHER you get, that's the key.
A division W=F/D would mean that it would be more difficult to lift your leg than to fly to the Moon, which in this Universe doesn't make sense.
Cheers!
Daniel
Related Articles
Daniel Mazur
Expertise
Questions anyone (teenager, undergrad, graduate, professional) may ask on physics, mathematics or inorganic chemistry. Questions may concern subjects themselves or a possible future career in them, if you need advice on a school or hobby project, or you just came across a question that is beyond your current curriculum. I answer bare textbook problems sometimes, but I reserve the the right to redirect you to Physics-Physics section. The kind of questions I like to answer: I just started having science classes at school and they seem difficult, but I enjoy them. Where do I find more information on this, which is not in textbooks but still comprehensible to me? Just leaving high school, and I feel science is really the thing for me. Can you recommend a school and an undergrad program suitable to my inclinations? I am in my second undergraduate year in Physics. We learned the basics of universe expanding this year, the Hubble constant and all that, but invited speakers that gave talks on astrophysics in our department seemed not to agree with this model at all. Is it of any use at all? I am building a [materials research] experimental device for my masters/doctorate thesis and I have the following problem:... I have tried ..., but it still doesn't work. Where might the problem be?
©2012 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.