PHYS 172 RECITATION 01 FALL 2022

Newton’s First Law

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REC Section DAY ___________ REC Section TIME _____________

PLEASE WORK ON THIS SHEET AT HOME. AFTER YOU ARE COMPLETE, PRINT IT TO PDF. THEN UPLOAD IT ON
BRIGHTSPACE IN THE LINK PROVIDED IN WEEK 01 > RECITATION 01 FOLDER

Problem 1: A hockey puck is sliding on the smooth ice surface of a skating rink. This figure below shows the
puck’s position on the ice surface at a sequence of equally spaced times t0, t1, t2, t3 and t4. The x-axis shown is
parallel to the rink’s length and the y-axis to its width. The marks along the axes are spaced 1 meter apart. The
unseen z-axis points straight up out of the page.

1) List all objects in the puck’s surroundings that interact with it during the time interval between t0 and
t4. Explain briefly why you think they do.
2) Draw on the figure below:
a) The arrow representing the position vector (r⃗1) of the puck relative to the coordinate system’s
origin at time t1. Do the same for the puck’s positions vectors r⃗ 2 at time and r⃗ 3 at time .
b) The puck’s displacement vector during the time interval from to .
We use the symbol to represent changes in a quantity like the time or the position of the
puck. For the time interval to , we say that the change in the time is , the final
or later time minus the initial or earlier time. Similarly, we use the symbol ∆ r⃗ 21 to represent the
displacement vector you drew since, ∆ r⃗ 21=⃗r 2−⃗r 1 the puck’s final position vector minus its initial
position vector.
c) Draw the arrow representing the puck’s displacement ∆ r⃗ 32

3) What are the components of the puck’s position vectors at times , and . Explain your answer.

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4) If the time intervals and are 2 seconds, what are the components of the puck’s average
velocity during each of those intervals? Explain your answer.

5) In this physical situation how do you think the puck’s average velocity vector for the interval
compares to the puck’s instantaneous velocity at times , and ? Explain your answer.

6) What can you conclude from your answers to parts 4) and 5) about, in the words of Newton’s first law
of motion, the extent to which the puck is interacting with other objects during the interval between
times and ? Explain your answer.

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Problem 2: (Optional – But learn it for the Exam) A vehicle travels along a circular path as shown in the figure.
From A to B, the vehicle maintains a constant speed of 4 m/s, from B to C, 8 m/s, and from C to D, 12 m/s.

1) What is the average speed of the vehicle in traveling from A to D? Clearly show your work.

2) What is the average velocity in traveling from A to B? Clearly show your work.