A particle subject to a force moves clockwise along the arc of a circle of radius centered at the origin, beginning at and ending at .
(a) Find the work done by . Be sure you can explain the sign of your answer.
Work =
(b) How much work is done if the particle moves from to along the circular arc as before, then in a straight line to the origin, and then in a straight line to ? Hint: Sketch this closed path and the vector field.
Work =
(c) Is path-independent?
?
Yes
No
Cannot be determined
Be sure you can explain your answer.
You can earn partial credit on this problem.