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QLDPhysicsQuick questions

Unit 2: Linear motion and waves

Quick questions on Displacement, velocity and acceleration (QCE Physics Unit 2)

9short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.

What is position?
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The location of an object relative to a reference point, given as a coordinate (often xx or r⃗\vec{r}). Vector.
What is distance?
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The total length of the path travelled. Scalar.
What is displacement?
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The change in position from start to finish, Δr⃗=r⃗f−r⃗i\Delta \vec{r} = \vec{r}_f - \vec{r}_i. Vector. Independent of path.
What is speed?
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Distance per unit time. Scalar.
What is velocity?
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Rate of change of displacement. Vector.
What is acceleration?
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Rate of change of velocity. Vector.
What is q1?
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Define displacement, velocity and acceleration and identify which are vectors. [3 marks]
What is q2?
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A car covers 1200 m1200 \text{ m} around a loop in 80 s80 \text{ s}, returning to its start. State the distance, the displacement, the average speed and the average velocity. [3 marks]
What is q3?
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A Cairns light-rail train accelerates from rest to 14 m s−114 \text{ m s}^{-1} in 20 s20 \text{ s}. (a) Calculate the average acceleration. (b) Sketch a velocity-time graph and identify the area-under-graph as displacement.

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