Displacement and Velocity

Front

Position Noun

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[puh-zish-uhn]

Back

Position

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A measure of an object's location at a specific time with respect to a reference point.

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Example: A compass shows direction (like North, South, East, West), which is essential for describing an object's specific position relative to a starting point.

Front

Displacement Noun

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[dis-pleys-muhnt]

Back

Displacement

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The change in an object's position, represented as a vector from the initial to the final position.

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Example: A person moves from an initial position (1.5 m) to a final position (3.5 m), resulting in a displacement of +2.0 meters.

Front

Distance Traveled Noun

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[dis-tuhns trav-uhld]

Back

Distance Traveled

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The total length of the path an object takes between two positions, regardless of its direction of movement.

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Example: This diagram shows that distance traveled is the total length of the actual path taken (the 8 Km winding road), not the straight-line path.

Front

Scalar Quantity Noun

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[skey-ler kwon-ti-tee]

Back

Scalar Quantity

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A physical quantity that is fully described by its magnitude or size alone, without any associated direction.

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Example: A speedometer shows a car's speed, like 290 km/h. This is a scalar quantity because it only has a magnitude (a number) and no direction.

Front

Vector Quantity Noun

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[vek-ter kwon-ti-tee]

Back

Vector Quantity

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A physical quantity that is described by both a magnitude or size and a specific direction.

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Example: This diagram shows that a vector quantity has both a direction (the arrowhead) and a magnitude (the arrow's length), like a bigger force (2F).

Front

Vector Component Noun

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[vek-ter kuhm-poh-nuhnt]

Back

Vector Component

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The projection of a vector quantity along a specific axis within a chosen coordinate system.

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Example: This diagram shows how a single vector, like a diagonal movement, can be broken down into its horizontal (side-to-side) and vertical (up-and-down) parts.

Front

Magnitude Noun

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[mag-ni-tood]

Back

Magnitude

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The size, amount, or length of a quantity, which for a vector is a non-negative scalar value.

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Example: This diagram shows a vector, labeling its length as the 'Magnitude' to represent the size or amount of a quantity like displacement or velocity.

Front

Resultant Noun

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[ri-zuhl-tnt]

Back

Resultant

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A single vector that represents the sum or combination of two or more individual vectors.

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Example: This diagram shows that when two displacements (vector A and vector B) happen one after another, the final change in position is the resultant vector (R).

Front

Motion Noun

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[moh-shuhn]

Back

Motion

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The phenomenon in which an object changes its position with respect to a reference point over time.

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Example: This image shows a driving simulator. It does not clearly illustrate the scientific concept of motion as a change in position, nor does it explain displacement or velocity.

Front

Motion Diagram Noun

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[moh-shuhn dahy-uh-gram]

Back

Motion Diagram

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A visual representation of an object's motion that shows its position at several equally spaced moments in time.

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Example: This image shows a basketball's position at equal moments in time, creating a visual record of its path, which is a motion diagram.