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Item EG076002: A basket ball has more motion energy than a boy when the ball is moving through the air and the boy is standing still.

A boy is playing basketball.  He throws the ball toward the basket and stands still while he watches the ball move through the air.

While the ball is moving through the air, does the boy or the ball have more kinetic energy (motion energy) and why?

  1. The boy has more kinetic energy because he is alive, and the ball is not.
  2. The boy has more kinetic energy because he weighs more than the ball.
  3. The ball has more kinetic energy because it is moving, and the boy is not.
  4. The ball has more kinetic energy because it is higher off the ground than the boy.
Distribution of responses
Answer Choice
Overall
Grades
Gender
Primary Language
 
n = 1508
4–5
n = 282
6–8
n = 638
9–12
n = 588
Male
n = 727
Female
n = 757
English
n = 1285
Other
n = 183
A. 11%20% 12% 7% 13% 10% 11% 16%
B. 13%12% 14% 12% 14% 12% 12% 17%
C. 67%58% 65% 73% 65% 69% 69% 54%
D. 9%11% 9% 8% 8% 10% 8% 14%