Speed and Velocity Quiz

PDF page 76: There is more to motion than distance and displacement. Questions such as, “How long does a foot race take?” and “What was the runner’s speed?” cannot be answered without an understanding of other concepts. In this section we will look at time, speed, and velocity to expand our understanding of motion. A description of how fast or slow an object moves is its speed. Speed is the rate at which an object changes its location. Like distance, speed is a scalar because it has a magnitude but not a direction. Because speed is a rate, it depends on the time interval of motion. You can calculate the elapsed time or the change in time, , of motion as the difference between the ending time and the beginning time

PDF page 76: The SI unit of time is the second (s), and the SI unit of speed is meters per second (m/s), but sometimes kilometers per hour (km/h), miles per hour (mph) or other units of speed are used. When you describe an object's speed, you often describe the average over a time period. Average speed, vavg, is the distance traveled divided by the time during which the motion occurs.

PDF page 76: The SI unit of time is the second (s), and the SI unit of speed is meters per second (m/s), but sometimes kilometers per hour (km/h), miles per hour (mph) or other units of speed are used. When you describe an object's speed, you often describe the average over a time period. Average speed, vavg, is the distance traveled divided by the time during which the motion occurs.

PDF page 76: Suppose, for example, a car travels 150 kilometers in 3.2 hours. Its average speed for the trip is

PDF page 76: The SI unit of time is the second (s), and the SI unit of speed is meters per second (m/s), but sometimes kilometers per hour (km/h), miles per hour (mph) or other units of speed are used. When you describe an object's speed, you often describe the average over a time period. Average speed, vavg, is the distance traveled divided by the time during which the motion occurs.

PDF page 76: A car's speed would likely increase and decrease many times over a 3.2 hour trip. Its speed at a specific instant in time, however, is its instantaneous speed. A car's speedometer describes its instantaneous speed.

PDF page 76: A car's speed would likely increase and decrease many times over a 3.2 hour trip. Its speed at a specific instant in time, however, is its instantaneous speed. A car's speedometer describes its instantaneous speed.

PDF page 77: The vector version of speed is velocity. Velocity describes the speed and direction of an object. As with speed, it is useful to describe either the average velocity over a time period or the velocity at a specific moment. Average velocity is displacement divided by the time over which the displacement occurs.

PDF page 77: The vector version of speed is velocity. Velocity describes the speed and direction of an object. As with speed, it is useful to describe either the average velocity over a time period or the velocity at a specific moment. Average velocity is displacement divided by the time over which the displacement occurs.

PDF page 78: Velocity, like speed, has SI units of meters per second (m/s), but because it is a vector, you must also include a direction. Furthermore, the variable v for velocity is bold because it is a vector, which is in contrast to the variable v for speed which is italicized because it is a scalar quantity.

PDF page 78: Suppose a passenger moved toward the back of a plane with an average velocity of –4 m/s. We cannot tell from the average velocity whether the passenger stopped momentarily or backed up before he got to the back of the plane. To get more details, we must consider smaller segments of the trip over smaller time intervals such as those shown in Figure 2.9. If you consider infinitesimally small intervals, you can define instantaneous velocity, which is the velocity at a specific instant in time. Instantaneous velocity and average velocity are the same if the velocity is constant.

PDF page 78: Earlier, you have read that distance traveled can be different than the magnitude of displacement. In the same way, speed can be different than the magnitude of velocity. For example, you drive to a store and return home in half an hour. If 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.

PDF page 78: Earlier, you have read that distance traveled can be different than the magnitude of displacement. In the same way, speed can be different than the magnitude of velocity. For example, you drive to a store and return home in half an hour. If 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.