Horsepower

High school (ages 12+)
Science & Technology

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/horsepower

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the originator and date?James Watt, late 18th century
2. What is the imperial horsepower value?Approximately 745.7 watts
3. What is horsepower and why do we use it?Horsepower is a unit that tells us how much power a machine can produce, like a car engine. It was made by James Watt to compare his steam engine to a horse.
4. How did James Watt come up with the number for one horsepower?He watched draft horses work and estimated that a horse could lift 33,000 pounds one foot in one minute. That work rate became the definition of one horsepower.

Power: The rate at which work is done or energy is transferred.
Work: The energy transferred when a force moves an object over a distance.
SI Unit: International System of Units, the modern metric system of measurement.
Steam Engine: An engine that uses steam to generate mechanical work.