There are a few common misunderstandings about conservative and non-conservative forces in college physics that I’ve noticed:
Energy Conservation Confusion: Many people believe that all forces that do work are conservative. But that's not true! Non-conservative forces, like friction, actually waste energy. This makes it hard to keep energy balanced.
Path Independence: Some think that all forces work the same way, no matter which route you take. In reality, only conservative forces do this. They allow the same amount of work to happen, no matter how you get there.
Work and Energy: Lastly, students sometimes forget that work done by non-conservative forces doesn’t add to potential energy. On the other hand, conservative forces do add to potential energy, shown as (W_c = \Delta U).
There are a few common misunderstandings about conservative and non-conservative forces in college physics that I’ve noticed:
Energy Conservation Confusion: Many people believe that all forces that do work are conservative. But that's not true! Non-conservative forces, like friction, actually waste energy. This makes it hard to keep energy balanced.
Path Independence: Some think that all forces work the same way, no matter which route you take. In reality, only conservative forces do this. They allow the same amount of work to happen, no matter how you get there.
Work and Energy: Lastly, students sometimes forget that work done by non-conservative forces doesn’t add to potential energy. On the other hand, conservative forces do add to potential energy, shown as (W_c = \Delta U).