Flashcard Machine - create, study and share online flash cards

The study of motion and of physical concepts such as force and mass is called dynamics.

The part of dynamics that describes motion without regard to its causes is called kinematics.

A frame of reference is a choice of coordinate axes that defines the starting point for measuring any quantity, an essential first step in solving virtually any problems in mechanics.

The displacement Δx of an object is defined as its change in position, and is given by

 

Δx = x_f - x_i

 

where the initial position of the object is labeled x_i and the final position is x_f.

In general, a vector quantity is characterized by having both a magnitude and a direction.

A scalar quantity has a magnitude, but no direction.

The average speed of an object over a given time interval is defined as the total distance traveled divided by the total time elapsed

 

The average velocity during a time interval is the displacement divided by

The average velocity of an object during the time interval is equal to the slope of the straight line joining the initial and final points on a graph of the object's position versus time.

The slope of the line tangent to the position vs. time curve at A is defined to be the instantaneous velocity at that time.

The instantaneous speed of an object, which is a scalar quantity, is defined as the magnitude of the instantaneous velocity.

The average acceleration during the time interval is the change in velocity divided by