At room temperature, a typical person loses energy to the surroundings at the rate of 62.0 W. If this energy loss has to be made up by an equivalent food intake, how many Calories does this person need to consume every day just to make up this heat loss?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

To convert the energy loss rate of 62.0 W to Calories consumed per day, we first need to convert the units of power from watts to Calories per second:
1 Cal/s = 4.184 W
Therefore, 62.0 W = 14.8 Cal/s

Next, we need to convert the rate of energy loss from Calories per second to Calories per day:
1 day = 86400 s
So, the energy loss per day = 14.8 Cal/s x 86400 s/day = 1277 Cal/day

Therefore, the person needs to consume approximately 1280 Calories per day just to make up for their heat loss to the surroundings. The closest answer choice is C, 1280 Calories.

At Room Temperature, a Typical Person Loses Energy to the Surroundings