Question
What does the law of conservation of energy say and mean?
Answer
4.1
(126 Votes)
Ivy
Veteran · Tutor for 12 years
Answer
The law of conservation of energy says that the total amount of energy in a closed system remains constant. It means that energy can't be created or destroyed but only can be changed from one form to another.
Explanation
The law of conservation of energy, also known as the first law of thermodynamics, can be stated in two main ways: The total amount of energy in an isolated system neither decreases or increases – it stays constant. Alternately, it can be summarized as 'energy cannot be created or destroyed but can only be shifted from one form to another.' This universal principle came about as a result of careful observations and analytical thinking from physicists - it essentially means that in any closed system (like the universe), the total amount of energy remains constant. We can see evidence of the law of conservation energy in everyday experiences. For example, when we throw a ball into the air, potential energy (the collapsed energy mainly based upon its height from the ground) is transformed into kinetic energy (the energy of movement) until the height is greatest. By this point, nearly all the energy has become potential energy. As it begins falling back down the kinetic energy increases as the ball gains velocity, and the potential turns into kinetic energy.