Your son or daughter comes home from school with questions about energy. How do you begin to explain such a vast concept? Teaching kids about energy starts with conveying that there are many forms of energy around us and even inside us. Life as we know it would not exist without energy. Energy is so important that all food packages list Calories, an old energy unit. Energy is either stored or involved with motion.

The property of an object or a system (a group of objects) which enables it to do work is called energy. You need energy to do work, or to apply a force across a distance, meaning to move something. If energy does involve moving an object, it is called kinetic energy. A ball rolling downhill has kinetic energy. Energy can also come from the position of an object or its arrangement. This type of energy is called potential energy, or stored energy. A ball that is stationary, on the slope of a hill, before it begins to roll down, has what is known as gravitational potential energy. As the ball rolls downhill, the potential energy it had is changed into kinetic energy. That is an example of the law of energy conservation; energy cannot be created or destroyed, it changes form from one type to another.

 Since energy does change from one form to another, sometimes it is difficult to determine whether energy is potential or kinetic. Some energy is potential energy and kinetic energy simultaneously, such as thermal energy, or heat. Even a moving object can have both potential energy and kinetic energy at the same time. As the ball rolls downhill, its potential energy is changed into kinetic energy. As it rolls, at any specific time, the total amount of energy that the ball has does not change; the law of energy conservation holds. This type of energy is considered mechanical energy.

When teaching kids about energy it’s important to relay that besides the motion of objects, other types of kinetic energy include radiant energy, or light; radiant heat energy; acoustic energy, or sound; and electrical energy, or electricity through wires. Other types of potential energy include electrical energy stored in a battery, chemical energy, nuclear energy, magnetic energy, and solar energy; all stored energy in atoms or molecules. Elastic energy is potential energy within a fluid or solid that can be converted into mechanical energy.

Can there ever be a perpetual motion machine? That is, a machine that never stops moving and constantly creates its own energy as it works? Most machines noticeably heat up as they operate. This heat is from friction. The energy that goes into a machine is always greater than the amount of work it produces, because some of the initial energy changes into friction. Because friction is never completely eliminated, the energy going into a machine is always going to be larger than the machines output. A machine can never run indefinitely, so a perpetual motion machine cannot exist.

When teaching kids about energy you can explain the different types of energy. Energy is either kinetic, involving motion, or potential, stored. Energy changes form from one to another, leading to the law of energy conservation. Energy cannot be created or destroyed, it transforms from one type to another type. A perpetual motion machine cannot exist, since such a device would counteract the law of energy conservation.

Energy is a fascinating and vast subject but by remembering these energy basics teaching kids about energy can be simple and fun.

Originally posted 2010-04-26 04:55:17. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Energy efficient house, turn your home into a low energy house because many of us are concerned about the amount of energy you use in and around your home, either because of environmental concerns or financial concerns. Here are some tips for turning your home into a energy efficient house.

1. Do a home energy audit. Go through your home and note the type and location of insulation, the state of the weather stripping on windows and doors, lighting, and so forth. As you do your audit, keep the following tips in mind. Continue reading “Energy Efficient House: Turn Your Home into a Low-Energy House” »

When you use one of those spiral energy-saving light bulbs (such as the GE Energy Smart CFL Light Bulb: 13 Watt ) what color is it when you turn it on? A more normal yellowish color or more whitish like fluorescent?

Originally posted 2010-04-25 03:42:31. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Do you find the look of the energy saving light bulb more beautiful than that of the traditional incandescent?

Originally posted 2010-04-24 11:42:06. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

How to cut down on electricity in your home, so if you are concerned about the environment or just want to save money (or both!), you are probably looking for ways to reduce your electricity use. Here are 21 suggestions and tips for getting those utility bills down and shrinking your carbon footprint. Continue reading “How To Cut Down on Electricity in Your Home” »

Originally posted 2010-04-10 14:55:27. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

How to save money going green in easy steps, and one of the best things about going green and saving money is that the two principles go hand-in-hand. Here are some steps you can take to implement both of these ideals.

1. Buy seasonal, local food. This is eco-friendly because it reduces “food miles,” thus saving fuel. It saves you money because seasonal, local produce takes less effort to grow and to transport. (You have to pay for a lot of extra energy if you’re buying hot-house tomatoes in the middle of January.)

2. Combine your shopping trips. This will save fuel – you buy less of it, and fewer emissions go into the atmosphere. Continue reading “How to Save Money Going Green in Easy Steps” »

How to save electricity by conserving at home during the hot summer months, because It is so tempting to crack up the air conditioning when it gets the slightest bit hot! But that begins an energy-wasting cycle of ever-colder A/C temperatures as you try to keep your home cool while the outdoors heats up. Here are some tips on how you can avoid this cycle and save energy this summer.

1. Don’t turn the A/C on as soon as it warms up. Open windows and spend lots of time outdoors instead. It is said that the body takes about 2 weeks to adjust to seasonal temperature change. Continue reading “How to Save Electricity by Conserving At Home During the Hot Summer Months” »

Lowering greenhouse gas emissions means conserving energy. There are quite a few things that you can do in your home to reduce your energy use and lower your emissions. Here are some ideas and suggestions.

1. Eat Local Food

Food that is grown in far-away states or countries requires a lot of fossil fuel to make it to you. This food shipment distance is known as “food miles,” and the more miles on your food, the more emissions produced from the fuels used. In contrast, local foods have not had to travel as far to get to your local grocery or farmer’s market. Buying local food contributes to your local community, resulting in less long-distance commerce in general. Continue reading “Easy Ways to Lower Your Greenhouse Gas Emissions at Home” »

Homestar program – A new incentive to invest in energy efficiency and create jobs. While in the face of an economic recession and an unemployment rate of 25 percent in the construction sector, President Obama proposed Homestar in his State of the Union address. This is an incentive program intended to encourage homeowners to make their homes more energy efficient and increase jobs. Homestar is not yet enacted, but the president has called on Congress to pass the program. Here are some of its key components.

Economic Boost

Homestar will offer homeowners rebates of up to 50 percent on energy-saving upgrades to their homes. Emphasis will be placed on U.S.-made products and installation by certified contractors. There are three different kinds of rebates available in the Homestar program: Direct to customer rebates, Silver Star and Gold Star. Continue reading “Homestar Program – A New Incentive to Invest in Energy Efficiency and Create Jobs” »

5.Can we apply Einstein mass and energy conservation law and newtons laws of motion to the particles been emitted in the radio active decay?