Physics Notes

Introduction to Motion:
 Motion is the change of an object’s position or orientation with respect to time.
 The path along which an object moves is called the trajectory. The trajectory can be
straight or curved.
 The particle model can be used to represent the motion of an object:
-We consider the size and shape of an object to be a single point.
-The same amount of time elapses between each dot/image.
-Important to label time of each dot.
 With an object we need to know its position (where the object is) and time (when the
object was at that position.
 The origin is a fixed reference point, and we can place it anywhere although some points
are more convenient than others. The origin is usually given a value of 0.
 From the origin we create positive and negative axes to show direction.
 We use x and y to represent the axes and place the object according to its position in
relation to the origin and axes. The symbol that represents a position along an axis is
called a coordinate.
 Displacement is the change in position. In mathematical terms:
Displacement is the difference between the final position xf and initial position xi
Δx = xfinal - xinitial
 Displacement is a signed quantity, and is a vector. It can be either positive or negative
and has specific direction and magnitude.
 Velocity is how fast an object moves in a specific direction. It is the rate of change of
position. Speed is how fast an object moves but does not include direction.
distance travelled
Speed =
time interval for travel

displacement
Average velocity =
time interval for displacement
 To find the velocity of a specific instant, we need to use instantaneous velocity rather
than average velocity (which gives us the average velocity of a longer period of time, not
an instant):
∆ x dx
V = lim =
∆ t →0 ∆ t dt
 Velocity usually means instantaneous velocity unless specified otherwise.
 Uniform motion is where objects have a constant velocity.
 In a position time graph, the velocity is the gradient of the position-time graph at any
given instant. If we have a function of displacement vs. time, we can differentiate it to
find a function of velocity vs. time.
 A vector quantity is a quantity that has both magnitude and direction. The magnitude of
a vector cannot be negative as it is the modulus.
 A scalar quantity is a single number with no direction. It can be positive, negative or
zero.
 A displacement vector (or displacement) is the vector drawn from the initial to final
position REGARDLESS OF THE ACTUAL PATH FOLLOWED. Hence, the displacement can
have a different magnitude to distance as it is always the shortest path (straight line).
 To add two vectors together you need to put the tail of one vector to the head of the
other. Then take the resulting vector from the tail to head that are free/remaining.
 We can work out lengths and angles using trigonometry: SOH CAH TOA
 A velocity vector not only indicates how fast an object is moving but also its direction. In
a velocity vector the magnitude of the vector shows the objects speed.
 A objects velocity vector points in the same direction as its displacement vector. The
length of the vector indicates the magnitude of the velocity, i.e. its speed.
 Acceleration is the rate of change in velocity:
vf −vi ∆ v
a= =
tf −ti ∆ t
 Velocity is the gradient of a position vs. time graph, while acceleration is the gradient of
a velocity vs. time graph.