Answer:
Scenario B
Explanation:
The elastic potential energy of a spring is given by:
[tex]U=\frac{1}{2}kx^2[/tex]
where k is the spring constant and x is the compression/stretching of the string.
Let's apply this formula to calculate the elastic potential energy for each scenario:
- Scenario A: [tex]U=\frac{1}{2}(3)(1.0 m)^2=1.50 J[/tex]
- Scenario B: [tex]U=\frac{1}{2}(6)(0.8 m)^2=1.92 J[/tex]
- Scenario C: [tex]U=\frac{1}{2}(9)(0.6 m)^2=1.62 J[/tex]
- Scenario D: [tex]U=\frac{1}{2}(12)(0.4 m)^2=0.96 J[/tex]
So, scenario B is the one that generates the most elastic potential energy.
