A technician measures the specific heat of an unidentified liquid by immersing an electrical resistor in it. Electrical energy is converted to heat transferred to the liquid for 120 s at a constant rate of 65.0 W. The mass of the liquid is 0.780 kg, and its temperature increases from 18.55°C to 22.54°C.
(a) Find the average specific heat of the liquid in this temperature range. Assume that negligible heat is transferred to the container that holds the liquid and that no heat is lost to the surroundings.
(b) Suppose that in this experiment heat transfer from the liquid to the container or surroundings cannot be ignored. Is the result calculated in part (a) an overestimate or an underestimate of the average specific heat? Explain.