Work-Energy Theorem (College Board AP® Physics 1: Algebra-Based): Exam Questions

Figure 1

In Experiment 1, a block is initially at position and in contact with an uncompressed spring of negligible mass. The block is pushed back along a frictionless surface from position to , as shown in Figure 1. The block compresses the spring by an amount . The block is then released. At the block enters a rough part of the track and eventually comes to rest at final position . The coefficient of kinetic friction between the block and the rough track is .

In Experiment 2, the spring is compressed twice as much, to .

Indicate whether the final position of the block in Experiment 2 will be greater than, equal to, or less than .

⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽⎽

Justify your reasoning.