1. Section Work
Work is a measure of the cumulative effect of a force in moving an object from one position to another.
Pushing a box full of books down the hallway.
Raising a bucket full of water from the bottom of a well.
Pumping oil from the ground.
Launching a satellite into orbit.

2. The Units Of Work Force  Distance = Work [pounds]  [feet] = [ft-lb]
[Newtons]  [meters] = [N-m]

3. The Work Integral
In the simplest case, we have a constant force F applied to an object to move it in a straight line from point a to point b. In this situation, the work is F·(b  a).
Integral calculus provides us a way to compute work when the force exerted is not constant, but varies with position x (i.e., force is a function of x, written as F(x)).