Original Project
Energy: Forms, Transformation, Transfer, and Conservation
Thermal energy is associated with the temperature and the mass of an object and the material of which the object…
Item EG052004: For two balloons that contain the same number of helium atoms, the helium atoms in the balloon with the greater thermal energy are moving at the greater average speed.
A student has two balloons filled with helium gas, Balloon 1 and Balloon 2. The balloons have the same number of helium atoms in them.
If the thermal energy of the helium in Balloon 1 is increased so that the helium in Balloon 1 has more thermal energy than the helium in Balloon 2, which helium atoms would be moving faster on average?
- The helium atoms in Balloon 1 would be moving faster on average.
- The helium atoms in Balloon 2 would be moving faster on average.
- The helium atoms in Balloon 1 would be moving at the same average speed as the helium atoms in Balloon 2.
- The only way to tell which helium atoms would be moving faster on average is to also know the temperature of the helium in each balloon.
- Distribution of Responses
- Students Responding Correctly
| Group | Correct | Total | Percent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 2308 | 4759 | 49% |
| Grades | |||
| 6–8 | 1224 | 2668 | 46% |
| 9–12 | 1079 | 2077 | 52% |
| Gender | |||
| Male | 1140 | 2297 | 50% |
| Female | 1129 | 2371 | 48% |
| Primary Language | |||
| English | 2055 | 4134 | 50% |
| Other | 194 | 485 | 40% |
- Disciplinary Core Ideas
- PS3.A Temperature is a measure of the average kinetic energy of particles of matter. The relationship between the temperature and the total energy of a system depends on the types, states, and amounts of matter present.
- NRC Framework
- Thermal energy is the random motion of particles (whether vibrations in solid matter or molecules or free motion in a gas)...