ASPECt
Energy: Forms, Transformation, Transfer, and Conservation
Item EG051004: For two glasses containing the same number of water molecules, the water with molecules that are moving at the lower average speed has less thermal energy.
A student has two glasses of water. Glass 1 and Glass 2 have the same number of water molecules in them.
If the average speed of the water molecules in Glass 1 is less than the average speed of the water molecules in Glass 2, which glass of water has less thermal energy?
- The water in Glass 1 has less thermal energy.
- The water in Glass 2 has less thermal energy.
- The water in Glass 1 and the water in Glass 2 have the same amount of thermal energy.
- The only way to tell which glass of water has less thermal energy is to also know the temperature of the water.
- Distribution of Responses
- Scale Score for Item Difficulty
(200[Easy]-800[Difficult]) - 499
- Students Responding Correctly
| Group | Correct | Total | Percent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 1285 | 3017 | 43% |
| Grades | |||
| 4–5 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 6–8 | 568 | 1498 | 38% |
| 9–12 | 717 | 1519 | 47% |
| Gender | |||
| Male | 607 | 1402 | 43% |
| Female | 643 | 1539 | 42% |
| Primary Language | |||
| English | 1168 | 2683 | 44% |
| Other | 82 | 240 | 34% |
- 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)...