The Secrets Of Heat Energy
Never confuse heat with temperature. These are two different things. While the heat of an object is the total kinetic energy of its molecules, with temperature we measure the average energy of its molecules. All those tiny particles are in a constant motion. Whenever you apply some extra energy upon on object, you cause its molecules to move faster and faster. Also, those molecules can cause other molecules to move faster. The result of this process is the heat energy.
Heat is the energy that can be transferred from one sample of matter to another. There are three processes that allow the temperature to move from one body to another. These are conduction, convection and radiation. This is possible because of the differences of temperature. The difference of temperature is absolutely necessary for this process, because in case those two bodies have the same temperature, there is no transfer of heat. But, if they indeed have different temperatures, the heat will flow from the object that is hotter to the other one. There are many methods to increase the temperature of an object.
We can do that by friction between the surfaces of some objects (like you do when you want to warm your hands on a winter day) or by mechanical shocks (for example, by using a hammer). Also, both gases and liquids can be heated. So, as you can observe, the basics of all these temperature increasing processes we find motion.
Among the sources of heat we can find sunlight, chemical reactions, electrical resistance, friction and nuclear reactions. The Sun's radiations can heat up any object. By radiating on an object, he puts the molecules into motion, resulting heat energy. The same thing is done, whenever we have a chemical reaction. For example, when something is burning, the motion of the molecules of the object burning, is accelerated, and has the same result as the friction, nuclear reactions or electrical resistance. So, all these processes use heat to obtain energy.
The heat energy is also present in the human body. All the living organisms need a certain amount of energy to live. And a simple way to obtain that energy is from food. Food can provide us with the proper amount of energy that we need. All the food is burned, producing carbon dioxide and water. This process is then used in a natural way to produce energy.