The results of this experiment may allow for the development of variety of technological gadgets. Energy and matter are also associated to each other at much larger scales of nature. Later on in this chapter, we will examine how solar radiation provides the energy to create the matter that makes up organisms. Organisms then use some of this matter to power their metabolism . Types of Energy Energy comes in a variety forms.
Kinetic energy is the energy due to motion.
A rock falling from a cliff, a bee in flight, wind blowing leaves of trees, and water following over a waterfall are all examples of kinetic energy. Potential energy is the energy stored by an object that can be potentially transformed into another form of energy. Water stored behind a dam, the chemical energy of the food we consume, and the gasoline that we putting in our cars are all examples of potential energy. Conversion of this energy occurs when the energy in food is used for metabolism and it has been digested, when the water in the dam flows through turbines to produce electricity from motion, and when the gasoline is used in a engine to produce motion from combustion. Some other forms of energy include heat, electricity, sound, energy of chemical reactions, magnetic attraction, energy of atomic reactions, and light.