The smallest bird is the Cuban bee hummingbird, which has a mass of only 1.7 g. If this bird did 8.8 10 –4J of work by exerting an upward force of 3.4 10 –4 N, how far did it fly?

The distance the bird flew is approximately 2.59 meters

Explanation:

We list out the parameters in the question, and the required measurement as follows;

The mass of the Cuban bee hummingbird, m = 1.7 g = 0.0017 kg

The amount of work the bird does, W = 8.8 × 10⁻⁴ J

The amount of upward force the bird exerts, F = 3.4 × 10⁻⁴ N

Let 'd' represent the distance flown by the bird

(The downward force, = The weight of the bird, W

W = The mass of the bird, m × The acceleration due to gravity, g

The acceleration due to gravity, g ≈ 9.81 × 10 m/s²

∴ ≈ 0.0017 kg × 9.81 m/s² = 0.016677 N > F)

Given that the weight of the bird is larger than 'F', we assume that the force exerted by the bird is the net force, = F

Therefore;

Work done, W = Net Force, × Distance, d

∴ W = × d

d = W/ = 8.8 × 10⁻⁴ J/(3.4 × 10⁻⁴ N) = 2.58823529 meters

The distance the bird flew, d ≈ 2.59 m.