Physics: Principles with Applications (7th Edition)

Published by Pearson
ISBN 10: 0-32162-592-7
ISBN 13: 978-0-32162-592-2

Chapter 6 - Work and Energy - Questions - Page 162: 14

Answer

The muscles of the human body exert nonconservative forces. If you step up and then jump down, you move your mass up, and then down to the same level. This is to be compared to the relatively little change of stepping over the log. The inefficiency in the first case requires more effort from your muscles.

Work Step by Step

Raising ourselves up onto the log requires more work and consumes more energy, making it less efficient.
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