Download Chapter 9 Vocabulary Energy – the ability to do work Kinetic energy

Chapter 9 Vocabulary
Energy – the ability to do work
Kinetic energy – energy of motion
Potential energy - the energy an object has because of its position or shape
Gravitational potential energy – energy due to an object’s position above the Earth’s surface.
Mechanical energy - total energy of motion and position of an object
Energy Conversion - a change from one form of energy into another; any form of energy can be converted into another
form
Law of Conservation of Energy - energy can neither be created nor destroyed
Energy resource – a natural resource that can be converted by humans into other forms of energy in order to do useful
work
Nonrenewable Resources– natural resources that cannot be replaced or that can be replaced only over thousands or
millions of years.
Renewable Resources – natural resources that can be used and replaced over a relatively short time
Fossil Fuels – nonrenewable energy resources that form in the Earth’s crust over millions of years from the buried
remains of once- living organism.
Chapter 16:2 Vocabulary
Nuclear Fission - the process in which a large nucleus splits into two smaller nuclei
Nuclear Fusion - the process in which two or more nuclei with smaller masses join together, or fuse, to form a larger,
more massive nucleus