Displacement and Velocity

MOTION IN 1 DIMENSION
Which one has…

 1 dimension?
 2 dimensions?
 3 dimensions?

Motion in one dimension means

motion in a straight line
Distance vs Displacement

Starting from the front door of the

classroom, you walk past the
teacher’s desk, past the first two
tables, turn left down the third
row, visit the eye wash station,
then end up right next to the back
door.
distance

displacement
Teacher’s desk
Distance vs displacement

 Distance
 Total length, measured in SI units of meters
 Add up the length of the entire path
 Displacement
 Relative motion length, measured in meters
 Ignore the actual path
Distance is a scalar measurement
Displacement is a vector measurement
Scalar vs Vector
Vector measurements
Scalar measurements have:
have: 1. Magnitude (size)
1. Magnitude (size) 2. Unit
2. Unit 3. Direction
Ex: 2200 m 4. Wear Hats!
Ex: 2.3 m down
4.5 kg
20 mi/hr North
20 mi/hr
8.9 m/s South
8.9 m/s
6 m left
Directions of Vectors

All directions are compared to a chosen

starting position. Ex: the starting line
of a race, the floor (for motion that is
up & down), the wall
We will use vector measurements,
including the direction, in
mathematical formulas.
Direction can be negative or positive
Using a ruler, sketch each
example in your notes:

15 mm
10 mm down
right

5 mm up 20 mm
left
Vectors are NOT like a
number line
Which one is a smaller NUMBER?
-3 or 3
Which one is a smaller VECTOR displacement?
-3 or 3 Neither- absolute value
The two displacements in this example have the
same magnitude : 3
The same unit :m
Opposite directions: one is negative, the other is
positive
Displacement vs Time

The Incredible Hulk and Superman run down a

track as hard as they can for 10 s. Superman
ran 100 m. The Hulk ran 30 m. Who ran faster?
Superman
 Sketch the two lines:
100 m

80 m

60 m
position

40 m Superman

20 m Hulk

0m
2s 4s 6s 8s 10 s
Time
Compare the slopes

On all position vs time graphs, when the

movement is faster, the slope is steeper.
position

Time
Interpreting Graphs

a. Starting at the intersection of Bay Area Blvd

and Space Center Blvd (point of reference),
Daisy ran for 4 s. During that time she moved
20 meters on Space Center Blvd.
b. Then she stopped for 2 s
c. Next she ran for another 4 s in the positive
direction.
d. Then Daisy ran backwards.
e. And THEN she ran even faster. The slope is
steeper.
 Position vs time
40 m
D
30 m C
position

B
20 m
A

10 m E

0m
0s 2s 4s 6s 8s 10 s 12 s
C. Was her speed the same as before?
Yes
D. Why is the slope negative?
She is going back the way she came (negative
direction)
Is she going faster or slower than before?
No, 20 meters in 2 seconds
E. What happens when the line crosses 0?
She passes her starting position
Compare Daisy’s starting
position to the end of
segment D.
 Her distance=
20 m + 0 m + 20 m + 20 m = 60 m
 Her displacement=
20 m + 0 m + 20 m + -20 m = 20 m
Speed vs Velocity

Speed is how fast Velocity is how fast

something moves over a something moves over a
given distance. given distance and in a
given direction.

Speed is a SCALAR Velocity is a VECTOR

measurement. measurement
 The Velocity Formula

Vavg = ∆ dx
∆t or
x

∆ means “change in”

∆dx is change in displacement, m
∆ t is change in time, s
vavg is average velocity, m/s
Velocity Example
28 m

14 m
distance

displacement
Teacher’s desk
Velocity Example Continued

My walk “the long way” (28 m) from the front

door to the back door took 20 s.
Calculate the speed:
S = dx s= 28 m s = 1.4 m/s
t 20 s
Using my displacement (14 m), calculate the
velocity:
V= ∆ dx v= 14 m v= 0.7 m/s
∆t 20 s
Speed vs Velocity

 Do the speed and velocity of an object always

have different magnitudes?
 No. In fact, they are almost always the same.
 When motion is in a straight line, the magnitude
of the speed is the same as the magnitude of the
velocity.
 For most of our calculations we will assume
that speed is the same as the velocity, just
with no direction.
Example 2

The quarterback drops S=d x s= 4.55 m

back 4.55 m in 2 s before t 2s
he passes the ball. s= 2.275 m/s
(Straight line,
backwards). What is his
speed? His velocity? V = ∆ xd v = -4.55 m
His distance= ∆t 2s
4.55 m V= -2.275 m/s
His displacement=
-4.55 m
Average Velocity vs
Instantaneous Velocity
You drive from CBHS to I-45, 2 miles away. The
trip takes 30 minutes (0.50 hr), because you are
stopped at a red light and then you also stop for
gas. During your trip your speedometer reads:
35 mi/hr
26 mi/hr-when stuck behind slow
people
0 mi/hr- when stopped at the light
50 mi/hr-when speeding
o mi/hr – when pumping gas
Average velocity vs
Instantaneous velocity
Instantaneous Velocities: Average Velocity:
35 mi/hr From start to finish this 2
26 mi/hr-when stuck mile trip took 0.50 hr.
behind slow people Your average velocity is:
0 mi/hr- when stopped at
the light Vavg=∆dx Vavg=2 mi
50 mi/hr-when speeding ∆t 0.50 hr
o mi/hr – when pumping Vavg= 4 mi/hr
gas
Average velocity vs
Instantaneous velocity
If velocity is constant, then average velocity is
the same as instantaneous velocity.
Ex:
When driving in a school zone, every time you
look at the speedometer is should read 20
mi/hr.
Instantaneous velocity: 20mi/hr
Average velocity: 20mi/hr
Summary

 Speed is a SCALAR measurement

 Speed is ALWAYS positive
 Velocity is a VECTOR measurement
 Velocity can be positive or negative
 Velocity MUST include a direction
 The meaning of the slope of a position vs
time graph is the velocity of an object in m/s.
 Position vs time
40 m
D
30 m C
position

B
20 m
A

10 m E

0m
0s 2s 4s 6s 8s 10 s 12 s
Position vs Time

What was Daisy’s velocity during each segment of

the trip?
A) v= ∆dx v= 20 m v= 5 m/s
∆t 4s
B) V = ∆ dx v= 0 m v= o m/s
∆t 2s
C) V = ∆ dx v = 20 m v= 5 m/s
∆t 4s
D) v= ∆dx v = -20 m v = -10 m/s
∆t 2s