Answer by nasu for Is spring force really a conservative force?
I think that you are confused about what "independent of path" means. For conservative forces the work done between two STATES of the system is independent of path. We also can define a potential...
View ArticleAnswer by Dale for Is spring force really a conservative force?
The issue that you are running into is that the system in the third case is more complicated than in the first and second cases. In the first and second cases the position of the block is sufficient to...
View ArticleAnswer by user65081 for Is spring force really a conservative force?
It is conservative, it depends on the path, although the dependence of the force with $x$ is different just because the configuration is different. in case (3) the horizontal force is...
View ArticleAnswer by BioPhysicist for Is spring force really a conservative force?
You have to remember that the energy is "stored" in the spring. The block doesn't have the potential energy. The energy of the third system isn't only dependent on the position of the block (or, more...
View ArticleAnswer by Cort Ammon for Is spring force really a conservative force?
The position of the block is the same in both cases, but the position of the block does not wholey define the potential energy in the spring. The length the spring is stretched defines the potential...
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Is spring force really a conservative force?
Let us consider this picture.$\Rightarrow$ The first picture shows the initial position of the block when the spring is in its natural length and is kept on a smooth horizontal table.$\Rightarrow$ The...
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