Why Is Kinetic Energy Important?
Work changes the energy of an object. So if an object, such as a truck, has a lot of kinetic energy, it takes a lot of work to stop it. Imagine that there are two trucks that are the same mass (2,000 kg) and have the same braking force. Truck A is traveling 20 m/s, and Truck B is traveling 40 m/s. How do you think their kinetic energies will compare?