Question

When will the potential energy of a person be minimum?
A. Person is standing
B. Person when sitting on a chair
C. Person is sitting on the chair
D. Person when lying on the ground

Answer 1

The potential energy of a body can be defined as the energy possessed by a body because of the higher position above the earth of the body. The potential energy can be found by taking the product of the mass of the person, acceleration of gravity and the height of the person above the surface of the earth. This will help you in answering this question.

Complete step by step answer:
The potential energy of a body can be defined as the energy possessed by a body because of the higher position above the earth of the body. The potential energy can be found by taking the product of the mass of the person, acceleration of gravity and the height of the person above the surface of the earth. This can be written as an equation given as,
$PE=mgh$
Where $h$ be the height above the ground, $g$ be the acceleration and $m$ be the mass of the mass of the body. When a person will be lying on the ground then he will be having a minimum or zero height above the ground. Hence the potential energy of the person will also be the minimum one. Hence the correct answer has been found.

So, the correct answer is “Option D”.

Note: Potential energy can be defined as the energy which is stored or the quantity conserved in a body or the substance. This stored energy can be measured based on the position, state of the object or substance or the arrangement. This energy can be measured in the units of joule.