Physics Intro & Kinematics

Quantities

Units

Vectors

Displacement
Velocity

Acceleration

Kinematics

Graphing Motion in 1-D
Some Physics Quantities
Vector - quantity with both magnitude (size) and direction
Scalar - quantity with magnitude only
Vectors:
Displacement
Velocity
Acceleration
Momentum
Force
Scalars:
Distance
Speed
Time
Mass
Energy
Mass vs. Weight
On the moon, your mass would be the same,
but the magnitude of your weight would be less.
Mass
Scalar (no direction)
Measures the amount of matter in an object
Weight
Vector (points toward center of Earth)
Force of gravity on an object
Vectors
The length of the
arrow represents the
magnitude (how far,
how fast, how strong,
etc, depending on the
type of vector).
The arrow points in
the directions of the
force, motion,
displacement, etc. It
is often specified by
an angle.
Vectors are represented with arrows
42

5 m/s
Units
Quantity . . . Unit (symbol)
Displacement & Distance . . . meter (m)
Time . . . second (s)
Velocity & Speed . . . (m/s)
Acceleration . . . (m/s
2
)
Mass . . . kilogram (kg)
Momentum . . . (kg m/s)
Force . . .Newton (N)
Energy . . . Joule (J)


Units are not the same as quantities!
SI Prefixes
pico p
10
-12
nano n
10
-9
micro
10
-6
milli m
10
-3
centi c
10
-2
kilo k
10
3
mega M
10
6
giga G
10
9
tera T
10
12
Little Guys Big Guys
Kinematics definitions
Kinematics branch of physics; study
of motion
Position (x) where you are located
Distance (d ) how far you have
traveled, regardless of direction
Displacement (x) where you are in
relation to where you started

Distance vs. Displacement
You drive the path, and your odometer goes up
by 8 miles (your distance).
Your displacement is the shorter directed
distance from start to stop (green arrow).
What if you drove in a circle?
start
stop
Speed, Velocity, & Acceleration
Speed (v) how fast you go
Velocity (v) how fast and which way;
the rate at which position changes
Average speed ( v ) distance / time
Acceleration (a) how fast you speed
up, slow down, or change direction;
the rate at which velocity changes
Speed vs. Velocity
Speed is a scalar (how fast something is
moving regardless of its direction).
Ex: v = 20 mph
Speed is the magnitude of velocity.
Velocity is a combination of speed and
direction. Ex: v = 20 mph at 15 south of west
The symbol for speed is v.
The symbol for velocity is type written in bold: v
or hand written with an arrow: v

Speed vs. Velocity
During your 8 mi. trip, which took 15 min., your
speedometer displays your instantaneous speed,
which varies throughout the trip.
Your average speed is 32 mi/hr.
Your average velocity is 32 mi/hr in a SE
direction.
At any point in time, your velocity vector points
tangent to your path.
The faster you go, the longer your velocity vector.
Acceleration
Acceleration how fast you speed up, slow
down, or change direction; its the rate at
which velocity changes. Two examples:

t (s) v (mph)
0 55
1 57
2 59
3 61
t (s) v (m/s)
0 34
1 31
2 28
3 25
a = +2 mph / s a = -3
m / s
s
= -3 m / s
2

Velocity & Acceleration Sign Chart
V E L O C I T Y

A
C
C
E
L
E
R
A
T
I
O
N
+
-
+
Moving forward;
Speeding up
Moving backward;
Slowing down

-
Moving forward;
Slowing down
Moving backward;
Speeding up
Acceleration due to Gravity
9.8 m/s
2

Near the surface of the
Earth, all objects
accelerate at the same
rate (ignoring air
resistance).
a = -g = -9.8 m/s
2

Interpretation: Velocity decreases by 9.8 m/s each second,
meaning velocity is becoming less positive or more
negative. Less positive means slowing down while going
up. More negative means speeding up while going down.
This acceleration
vector is the
same on the way
up, at the top,
and on the way
down!
Kinematics Formula Summary
(derivations to follow)
v
f
= v
0
+ a t
vavg = (v
0
+ v
f

) / 2
x = v
0
t + a t
2
v
f
2
v
0
2
= 2 a x
2
1
For 1-D motion with constant acceleration:
Kinematics Derivations
a = v / t (by definition)
a = (v
f
v
0
) / t
v
f
= v
0
+ a t
vavg = (v
0
+ v
f

) / 2 will be proven when we do graphing.
x = v t = (v
0
+ v
f
) t = (v
0
+ v
0
+ a t) t
x = v
0
t

+ a t
2

2
1
(cont.)
Kinematics Derivations (cont.)
2
1
v
f
= v
0
+ a t t = (v
f
v
0
) / a
x = v
0

t

+ a t
2

x = v
0
[(v
f
v
0
) / a] + a [(v
f
v
0
) / a]
2






v
f
2
v
0
2
= 2 a x


2
1
Note that the top equation is solved for t and that
expression for t is substituted twice (in red) into the
x equation. You should work out the algebra to prove
the final result on the last line.
3-1 Vectors and Scalars
A vector has magnitude as well as direction.
Some vector quantities: displacement, velocity,
force, momentum
A scalar has only a magnitude.
Some scalar quantities: mass, time, temperature
3-2 Addition of VectorsGraphical Methods
For vectors in one dimension, simple
addition and subtraction are all that is
needed.
You do need to be careful about the signs,
as the figure indicates.
3-2 Addition of VectorsGraphical Methods
If the motion is in two dimensions, the situation is somewhat more complicated.
Here, the actual travel paths are at right angles to one another; we can find the
displacement by using the Pythagorean Theorem.
3-2 Addition of VectorsGraphical Methods
Adding the vectors in the opposite order gives the same result:
3-2 Addition of VectorsGraphical Methods
Even if the vectors are not at right angles, they can be added
graphically by using the tail-to-tip method.
3-2 Addition of VectorsGraphical Methods
The parallelogram method may also be used; here again the vectors must be tail-
to-tip.
3-3 Subtraction of Vectors, and
Multiplication of a Vector by a Scalar
In order to subtract vectors, we define the negative of a vector,
which has the same magnitude but points in the opposite
direction.
Then we add the negative vector.
3-3 Subtraction of Vectors, and
Multiplication of a Vector by a Scalar
A vector can be multiplied by a scalar c; the result is a vector c
that has the same direction but a magnitude cV. If c is negative, the
resultant vector points in the opposite direction.
V
V
3-4 Adding Vectors by Components
Any vector can be expressed as the sum of two other vectors, which
are called its components. Usually the other vectors are chosen so that
they are perpendicular to each other.
3-4 Adding Vectors by Components
If the components are perpendicular, they can
be found using trigonometric functions.
3-4 Adding Vectors by Components
The components are effectively one-dimensional, so they can be added
arithmetically.
3-4 Adding Vectors by Components
Adding vectors:
1. Draw a diagram; add the vectors graphically.
2. Choose x and y axes.
3. Resolve each vector into x and y components.
4. Calculate each component using sines and cosines.
5. Add the components in each direction.
6. To find the length and direction of the vector, use:
and
.
3-4 Adding Vectors by
Components
Example 3-2: Mail carriers displacement.
A rural mail carrier leaves the post office and drives
22.0 km in a northerly direction. She then drives in a
direction 60.0 south of east for 47.0 km. What is
her displacement from the post office?
3-4 Adding Vectors by
Components
Example 3-3: Three short trips.
An airplane trip involves three legs, with two
stopovers. The first leg is due east for 620 km; the
second leg is southeast (45) for 440 km; and the
third leg is at 53 south of west, for 550 km, as
shown. What is the planes total displacement?
3-5 Unit Vectors
Unit vectors have magnitude 1.
Using unit vectors, any vector
can be written in terms of its components:
V






3-6 Vector Kinematics
In two or three dimensions, the
displacement is a vector:
3-6 Vector Kinematics
As t and r become smaller and smaller,
the average velocity approaches the
instantaneous velocity.
7-2 Scalar Product of Two Vectors
Definition of the scalar, or dot, product:
Therefore, we can write:
7-2 Scalar Product of Two Vectors
Example 7-4: Using the dot product.
The force shown has magnitude F
P
= 20 N and makes an angle of 30 to the
ground. Calculate the work done by this force, using the dot product, when the
wagon is dragged 100 m along the ground.
11-2 Vector Cross Product;
Torque as a Vector
The vector cross product is defined as:
The direction of the cross product is defined by a right-hand rule:
11-2 Vector Cross Product;
Torque as a Vector
The cross product can also be written in determinant form:
11-2 Vector Cross Product;
Torque as a Vector
Some properties of the cross product:
11-2 Vector Cross Product;
Torque as a Vector
Torque can be defined as the vector product of the force and the
vector from the point of action of the force to the axis of rotation:
11-2 Vector Cross Product;
Torque as a Vector
For a particle, the torque can be defined around a point O:
Here, is the position vector from the particle relative to O.
r
Example 11-6: Torque vector.
Suppose the vector is in the xz plane, and is given by
= (1.2 m) + (1.2 m)
Calculate the torque vector if = (150 N) .
11-2 Vector Cross Product; Torque
as a Vector

r
F
r