Module 11
Module 11
Scalar A scalar is any quantity that has a magnitude, but no direction. Distance
is an example of a scalar quantity.
Speed In everyday language, most people use the terms “speed” and “velocity”
interchangeably. In physics, however, they do not have the same meaning and
they are distinct concepts. One major difference is that speed has no direction.
Thus speed is a scalar.
Graph 1
Example Problem 1.0 You drive to a store and return home in
half an hour, and your car’s odometer shows the total distance traveled was 6
km, then your average speed was 12 km/h. Your average velocity, however,
was zero, because your displacement for the round trip is zero. (Displacement
is change in position and, thus, it is zero for a round trip.) Thus, average speed
is not simply the magnitude of average velocity.
Figure 1
During a 30-minute round trip to the store, t he total distance traveled is 6 km.
The average speed is 12 km/h. The displacement for the round trip is zero,
since there was no net change in position. Thus the average velocity is zero.
Another way of visualizing the motion of an object is to use a graph. A plot of
position or of velocity as a function of time can be very useful. For example, for
this trip to the store, the position, velocity, and speed-vs.-time graphs are
displayed in the Figure 1. (Note that these graphs depict a very simplified model
of the trip. We are assuming that speed is constant during the trip, which is
unrealistic given that we’ll probably stop at the store. But for simplicity’s sake,
we will model it with no stops or changes in speed. We are also assuming that
the route between the store and the house is a perfectly straight line.)
Graph 2
The graph shows you traveled 6.0 km for 15.0 minutes and back to initial
position for 30 minutes.
The graph shows that your speed is constant within 30.0 minutes travel.
Table 2
Time (t) Position (y)
1.00s 8.10 m
2.00s 6.40 m
3.00s -5.10 m
Graph 5
Table 3
Time (t) Velocity (v)
Graph 6
Table 4
Time (t) Acceleration(a)
Graph 7
At 1.00 s the rock is above its starting point and heading upward, since
y1 and v1 are both positive. At 2.00 s, the rock is still above its starting point,
but the negative velocity means it is moving downward. At 3.00 s, both y 3 and
v3 are negative, meaning the rock is below its starting point and continuing to
move downward. When the rock is at its highest point (at 1.5 s), its velocity is
zero, but its acceleration is still -9.8 m/s2.
The values for y are the positions (or displacements) of the rock, not the total
distances traveled. Free-fall applies to upward motion as well as downward.
Both have the same acceleration – the acceleration due to gravity, which
remains constant the entire time.
Learning Competency:
Construct velocity vs. time and acceleration vs. time graphs, respectively,
corresponding to a given position vs. time-graph and velocity vs. time graph
and vice versa (STEM_GP12KIN-Ib-16)
Activity 1 – PLOT ME GOOD
Directions: Given number 1 is done for you. Construct a graph of what is
asked
1. A car traveled for 50 seconds. We start our clock, and once every 10 s
we note the car’s position. As you can see from Figure 2, the car moves
to the right during the first 10 s of motion, from position A to position B.
After B, the position values begin to decrease, suggesting the car is
backing up from position B through position F. In fact, at D, t=30.0 s after
we start measuring, the car is at the origin of coordinates. It moves
continuously to the left and is more than 50 m to the left of x=0 when we
stop recording information after our sixth data point. Construct a position
vs time graph.
Table 5
Positi on T (s) X (m)
A 0 30
B 10 52
C 20 38
D 30 0
E 40 -37
F 50 -53
Figure 2
Figure 3
4. Below is a velocity (m/s) vs. time (s) graph for an object moving
horizontally in one dimension. For each time interval, explain what is
happening to the object’s (a) Velocity, (b) Speed, (c) Acceleration, and
(d) Displacement.
Figure 4
Table 6
Interval Velocity Speed Acceleration Displacement
0-A
A-B
B-C
C-D
D-E
E-F
F-G
5. Use the graph to find the average velocity from: (a) 0 s to 2 s (b) 2 s to
4 s.
Figure 5
Reflection:
1. I learned that
2. I enjoyed most on
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