Acceleration

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Instantaneous Velocity Noun

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[in-stun-tay-nee-us vuh-los-i-tee]

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Instantaneous Velocity

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The velocity of an object at a specific moment in time, equivalent to the average velocity over an infinitesimally small interval.

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Example: This graph shows an object's changing position over time. The slope of the straight, dashed line represents the object's velocity at a single instant.

Front

Tangent Line Noun

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[tan-juhnt line]

Back

Tangent Line

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A straight line that touches a curve at a single point, representing the instantaneous rate of change at that point.

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Example: An object moving in a circle has a velocity vector (blue arrow) that is tangent to its path, while its acceleration (red arrow) points inward.

Front

Time Derivative Noun

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[time duh-riv-uh-tiv]

Back

Time Derivative

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The rate at which a function's value changes with respect to time, representing the slope of the function's graph.

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Example: This velocity-time graph illustrates that acceleration is the time derivative of velocity. The slope of the line at any point shows the object's acceleration.

Front

Acceleration Noun

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[ak-sel-uh-rey-shuhn]

Back

Acceleration

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A vector quantity representing the rate of change of an object's velocity with respect to time, measured in m/s².

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Example: When a car speeds up, its acceleration and velocity are in the same direction. When it slows down, its acceleration opposes its velocity.

Front

Constant Accelerated Motion Noun

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[kon-stuhnt ak-sel-uh-rey-tid moh-shuhn]

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Constant Accelerated Motion

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Motion where an object's acceleration remains constant over time, resulting in a linear velocity versus time graph.

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Example: This graph shows that as time passes (x-axis), an object's speed (y-axis) increases at a steady, constant rate, which defines constant accelerated motion.

Front

Instantaneous Acceleration Noun

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[in-stun-tay-nee-us ak-sel-uh-rey-shuhn]

Back

Instantaneous Acceleration

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The acceleration of an object at a specific instant in time, found by the slope of a velocity versus time graph.

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Example: On a velocity-time graph, the slope of the tangent line at a single point shows the object's acceleration at that exact instant in time.

Front

Jerk Noun

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[jurk]

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Jerk

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The time derivative of acceleration, which quantifies the rate at which an object's acceleration is changing over time.

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Example: Jerk is the rate of change of acceleration. This graph shows that when acceleration changes quickly, jerk is high, representing a sudden lurch in motion.

Front

Snap Noun

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[snap]

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Snap

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The time derivative of jerk, representing the fourth derivative of position with respect to time in kinematics.

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Example: This displacement-time graph shows a curve with increasing slope, which represents acceleration (changing velocity), not the physics concept of 'Snap'.

Front

Pop Noun

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[pop]

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Pop

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The time derivative of crackle, representing the sixth derivative of position with respect to time in kinematics.

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Example: A roller coaster rapidly changes its speed and direction, causing riders to feel a 'pop' or jerk due to the sudden change in acceleration.

Front

Integral Noun

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[in-tuh-gruhl]

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Integral

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A mathematical calculation that represents the accumulated quantity, such as the area under a curve on a graph.

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Example: This graph shows that an integral represents the area under a curve. In physics, if the curve is acceleration over time, this area equals the change in velocity.