Kilimanjaro is the world's tallest water slide. It has a vertical drop of 49 meters. George has a mass of 90 kg and has 21,000 J of
kinetic energy when he reaches the water at ground level. How much energy is converted into heat when George reaches ground
level? Show your work. Give your answer with the correct units.
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Answer :

Sure, let's solve this step-by-step.

1. Identify the Given Data:
- Vertical drop of the water slide (height, [tex]\( h \)[/tex]): 49 meters
- Mass of George ([tex]\( m \)[/tex]): 90 kg
- Kinetic energy at ground level ([tex]\( KE \)[/tex]): 21,000 Joules
- Gravitational constant ([tex]\( g \)[/tex]): 9.8 m/s[tex]\(^2\)[/tex]

2. Calculate the Potential Energy at the Top of the Slide:
Potential energy ([tex]\( PE \)[/tex]) at the top of the slide is given by the formula:
[tex]\[ PE = m \cdot g \cdot h \][/tex]
Substituting the given values:
[tex]\[ PE = 90 \, \text{kg} \times 9.8 \, \text{m/s}^2 \times 49 \, \text{m} \][/tex]
[tex]\[ PE = 90 \times 9.8 \times 49 \][/tex]
[tex]\[ PE = 43218 \, \text{Joules} \][/tex]

3. Calculate the Energy Converted into Heat:
The energy converted into heat is the difference between the potential energy at the top and the kinetic energy at the bottom:
[tex]\[ \text{Energy converted to heat} = PE - KE \][/tex]
Substituting the known values:
[tex]\[ \text{Energy converted to heat} = 43218 \, \text{Joules} - 21000 \, \text{Joules} \][/tex]
[tex]\[ \text{Energy converted to heat} = 22218 \, \text{Joules} \][/tex]

Therefore, the energy converted into heat when George reaches ground level is [tex]\( 22,218 \)[/tex] joules.