GEOG 170A1 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Impact Crater, Photosynthesis
9 Oct 2014
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Document Summary
Geog 170: earth"s environment: introduction to physical geography - lecture 2: solar. Solar energy is the engine that drives earth"s physical systems. A system is an ordered, interested set of things, linked by flows of energy and matter. Matter is mass that has a shape and takes up space. Energy is the capacity to do work on matter, changing its condition or state. Energy can neither be created nor destroyed; it can only be transferred, (law of conservation of energy) Kinetic energy is the energy of motion; potential energy is unexpended energy. There is potential energy in an archer"s arm, and this is converted to kinetic energy when the archer "looses" the arrow. No energy can be escaped from a closed system. Energy flows into and out of open systems. A car is an open system; it converts fuel into motion, heat, etc. The energy is transferred; it is not destroyed.
