Question

if i fall off of a cliff, which statement is false about my energy at the bottom just before i hit the ground? we are ignoring air resistance. my kinetic energy is equivalent to my potential energy before i fell. my total energy decreased as i fell. potential energy equals kinetic energy halfway down. potential energy is zero.

Explanation:

In a system with no air resistance (conservative system), mechanical energy (sum of kinetic and potential energy) is conserved. As you fall, potential energy converts to kinetic energy, but total mechanical energy remains constant. At the bottom just before hitting the ground, potential energy is near zero (if we take ground as reference), kinetic energy equals initial potential energy, and halfway down, potential energy lost (half of initial) converts to kinetic energy so they are equal. So the statement "My total energy decreased as I fell" is false.

Answer:

My total energy decreased as I fell.