Calculating Work Conceptual Question

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on calculating the work required to accelerate a car from rest to a speed of v/2, given that Wo is the work needed to reach speed v. The consensus is that if the force remains constant, the work required to accelerate to v/2 is Wo/4, not Wo/2, due to the relationship defined by the Work-Energy theorem. This theorem states that the work done is equal to the change in kinetic energy, which is proportional to the square of the velocity.

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Homework Statement


A certain amount of work Wo is required to accelerate a car from rest to a speed v. How much work is required to accelerate the car from rest to v/2?

Homework Equations


W = Fd


The Attempt at a Solution


I know that if we were finding the distance instead of velocity, then the answer would be
Wo/2, but I'm not sure if the force is the same for each situation. If it is, then I assume that the answer would also be Wo/2.
 
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BugsSport said:
I know that if we were finding the distance instead of velocity, then the answer would be
Wo/2, but I'm not sure if the force is the same for each situation. If it is, then I assume that the answer would also be Wo/2.
What makes you think the distance would be 1/2?

What does the Work-Energy theorem tell you?
 

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