Kinematics Chapter 1 (Defs.) Flashcards
The study of motion.
Kinematics
A change in an object’s location as measured by a particular observer.
Motion
The total length of the path travelled by an object in motion.
Distance (d)
The line an object moves along from a particular starting point.
Direction
A quantity that has only magnitude (size).
Scalar
A quantity that has magnitude (size) and direction.
Vector
The distance and direction of an object from a reference point.
Position (d->)
The change in position of an object.
Displacement (Δd->)
A vector diagram drawn using a specific scale.
Vector scale diagram
A straight line between two points with a specific direction.
Directed line segment
The total distance travelled divided by the total time taken to travel that distance.
Average speed (Vav)
The total displacement, or change in position, divided by the total time for that displacement.
Average velocity (V->av)
A graph describing the motion of an object, with position on the vertical axis and time on the horizontal axis.
Position-time graph (d-> -t)
A measure of the steepness of a line.
Slope (m) = rise/run
Vertical change between two points on a line.
Rise
Horizontal change between two points on a line.
Run
Motion of an object at a constant speed in a straight line.
Motion with uniform or constant velocity
Motion in which the object’s speed changes or the object does not travel in a straight line.
Motion with non-uniform velocity (accelerated motion)
How quickly an object’s velocity changes over time (rate of change of velocity).
Acceleration (a-> av)
A graph describing the motion of an object, with velocity on the vertical axis and time on the horizontal axis.
Velocity-time graph (v-> -t)
Motion in which velocity changes at a constant rate.
Motion with uniform acceleration
The velocity of an object at a specific instant in time.
Instantaneous velocity (V-> inst)
Line to a curve at a given point is the straight line that “just touches” the curve at that point. Only one point.
Tangent
Represents the instantaneous velocity at the point of tangency.
Slope of the tangent
A graph describing motion of an object, with acceleration on the vertical axis and time on the horizontal axis.
Acceleration-time graph (a-> -t)
The acceleration that occurs when an object is allowed to fall freely; close to Earth’s surface, g has a value of 9.8 m/s^2.
Acceleration due to gravity (g)
The acceleration due to gravity of an object in the absence of air resistance.
Free fall
The velocity of an object when the force due to air resistance equals the force due to gravity on the object. 200 km/h.
Terminal velocity
