Science Assessment ~ Items ~ RG155002

A jar of cold water is placed over a flame, and the flame warms the water at the bottom of the jar, increasing its thermal energy.

What happens to the water at the bottom of the jar and to the thermal energy of the water?

As the water at the bottom of the jar gets warmer than the water above it, the water at the bottom of the jar and its thermal energy both rise because thermal energy is associated with the movement of the water molecules.
Nothing moves until the water starts to boil, and then the water at the bottom of the jar and its thermal energy both rise because thermal energy is associated with the movement of the water molecules.
As the water at the bottom of the jar gets warmer than the water above it, the thermal energy of the water at the bottom of the jar rises, but the water itself does not rise because thermal energy is not associated with the movement of the water molecules.
As the water at the bottom of the jar gets warmer than the water above it, the water at the bottom of the jar and its thermal energy both rise, but they rise separately because thermal energy is not associated with the movement of the water molecules.

Group	Correct	Total	Percent
Overall	751	1451	52%
Grades
4–5	N/A	N/A	N/A
6–8	398	799	50%
9–12	353	652	54%
Gender
Male	382	723	53%
Female	358	707	51%
Primary Language
English	665	1290	52%
Other	70	136	51%

NRC Framework: PS3.B. Heating is another process for transferring energy. Heat transfer occurs when two objects or systems are at different temperatures. Energy moves out of higher temperature objects and into lower temperature ones, cooling the former and heating the latter. This transfer happens in three different ways—by conduction within solids, by the flow of liquid or gas (convection), and by radiation, which can travel across space.

Science Assessment