Exploring Distance vs. Displacement

Which of the following is a vector quantity?

• Mass

• Temperature

• Volume

• Velocity

What is required to describe a scalar quantity?

• A number and a unit

• Only a direction

• Only a number

• A number and a direction

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS3-1

In a coordinate plane system, what does the positive sign on a dimension indicate?

• Left or down direction

• South or east direction

• Right or up direction

• North or west direction

What is the position of an object if it is located at the origin?

• x = -1 unit

• x = 10 units

• x = 0 units

• x = 1 unit

How is distance defined?

• The direction of travel

• The shortest path between two points

• The total length of the path traveled

• The change in position from start to end

If an object travels from point A to point B and then to point C, what is the total distance traveled?

• The straight line distance from A to C

• The sum of distances from A to B and B to C

• The difference between distances from A to B and B to C

• The average of distances from A to B and B to C

What is displacement?

• The direction of travel

• The total length of the path traveled

• The distance traveled in a straight line

• The change in position from the initial to the final point

How do you calculate displacement?

• By dividing the initial position by the final position

• By multiplying the initial and final positions

• By subtracting the initial position from the final position

• By adding the initial and final positions

What happens to the displacement if a car travels 4 km to the right and then 2 km to the left?

• It becomes 2 km to the left

• It becomes 6 km to the left

• It becomes 2 km to the right

• It becomes 6 km to the right

In a 100 meter displacement race, if one person runs straight and another takes a longer path, what is true about their displacements?

• Both have different displacements

• Both have the same displacement

• The one taking the longer path has a greater displacement

• The one running straight has a greater displacement