State the energy changes in the following case: a stone dropped from a cliff
In this case, the potential energy of a stone is changed into kinetic energy.
Definition of potential energy: When a body does work by a virtue of its position or configuration, it is said to have potential energy.
Definition of Kinetic energy: When a body does work by its motion, it is said to have kinetic energy.
When a stone is at the cliff, all the energy possessed by a stone is only potential energy. But once it dropped from the cliff its potential energy is converted into kinetic energy. In this way potential energy reduces as the height of the stone is reduced from the ground, Whereas kinetic energy is increasing.
Hence, in the case of a stone dropped from a cliff, potential energy changes to kinetic energy.