2.1 Kinematics

• V-=d/t

  v- = average speed (m/s)

  d =distance (m)

  t = time (s)
• Instantaneous speed is the speed of an object as it passes one particular point.
• Scalar quantities have a magnitude (size) only
• Vector quantities have a magnitude AND direction
• Scalar quantities include:

  • speed
  • distance
  • mass
  • energy
  • time
• Vector quantities include:

  • velocity
  • displacement
  • force (weight)
  • acceleration
  • momentum
• Average velocity= displacement/time
• Acceleration is the change of velocity per unit time. It is the rate of change of velocity. (ms-2)
• a=v-u/t

  a=acceleration (ms-2)

  v=final velocity (ms-1)

  u= initial velocity (ms-1)

  t= time (s)
• Alternative arrangement of equation

  v=u+at
• To calculate displacement from a velocity time graph use the area under the graph