Question

You lift a suitcase from the floor and keep it on a table. The work done by you on the suitcase does not depend on:
(a) The path taken by the suitcase
(b) The time taken by you in doing so
(c) The weight of the suitcase
(d) Your weight

Answer 1

Hint:Energy possessed by a body by virtue of its position is called potential energy. The work done is calculated as the movement of energy. Mass of the body is to be considered when energy or the work done is calculated.

Complete step by step answer:
Let us consider a suitcase being placed on a floor and let us assume that the table is at a considerable distance from the floor. The table will be of the height greater than that of the suitcase and so we can neglect the height of the suitcase. As both the suitcase and the table are on the floor, the reference frame is the floor.
The potential energy of a body is calculated as ,
$PE = mgh$
Here $m$ is the mass of the body, $g$ is the acceleration due to gravity, and $h$ is the height.
When the suitcase is at the floor, as the height is negligible, the potential energy will be zero. But when placed on the top of the table, the suitcase will, of course, pose a potential energy, $mgh$, where $h$ is the height of the table. Thus the change in potential energy acquired by the suitcase when shifted to the top of the table is the work done for lifting it. that is the work done in lifting the suitcase to the top of the table is,
$W = mgh$
Hence the work done is dependent on the mass of the suitcase, acceleration due to gravity and the height of the table. The work done does not depend on the path taken by the suitcase. The time taken to lift the suitcase does not have any effect on the work done. The weight of the lifter also has no impact on the work done in lifting the suitcase.
Therefore the correct options are (a), (b) and (c).

Note:When two bodies of different heights are considered with one of the heights much greater than the other, then the small quantity can be neglected. The energy changes are always calculated with reference to any frames.