DESCRIBING

MOTION
KEY WORDS

■ SCALAR/VECTOR
■ DISTANCE/DISPLACEMENT
■ SPEED/VELOCITY
■ ACCELERATION
■ UNIFORM ACCELERATION
■ FREE FALL
MOTION
■ defined as continuous change of position with
respect to a certain reference point
■ MECHANICS – study of motion of objects
■ divided into two parts
KINEMATICS – description of motion of objects
using words, diagrams, numbers,
graphs and equations
DYNAMICS – involves the cause of motion
■ A common way
of analyzing the
motion of
objects in
physics labs
■
 Ticker Tape Excercise
■ Ticker tape diagrams are sometimes referred to as oil drop
diagrams. Imagine a car with a leaky engine that drips oil
at a regular rate. As the car travels through town, it would
leave a trace of oil on the street. That trace would reveal
information about the motion of the car. Renatta Oyle
owns such a car and it leaves a signature of Renatta's
motion wherever she goes. Analyze the three traces of
Renatta's ventures as shown below. Assume Renatta is
traveling from left to right. Describe Renatta's motion
characteristics during each section of the diagram.
1.

Renatta decelerates from a high speed to low

speed until she is finally stopped. She
remains at rest for a while and then gradually
accelerates until the trace ends.
2.

Renatta travels at a constant speed

during the first time interval and then
gradually accelerates until the trace
ends.
3.

Renatta moves with a constant speed in the

first time interval. She then abruptly
decelerates to a stop. She remains at rest for
sometime and then moves with a constant
speed, slower than the first speed.
TWO CATEGORIES TO DESCRIBE THE
MOTION OF OBJECTS

SCALAR VECTOR
■ quantities that are ■ are quantities that
fully described by are fully described
magnitude ( or by both a
numerical value)
magnitude and a
alone
direction
EXAMPLE: Identify the following
measurements below as Scalar or Vector.

■ 5m
■ 30 m/sec, East
■ 5 mi, North
■ 20oC
■ 256 bytes
DISTANCE DISPLACEMENT
■ the straight distance from
■ is a scalar quantity the origin to the terminal
■ it has magnitude but point
no direction ■ an objects motion in terms
■ total length of speed of distance traveled in a
traveled particular direction from its
reference point
■ how much ground and
object has covered ■ vector quantity
during its motion ■ how far out of place an
object is
SAMPLE PROBLEM 1
■ A physics teacher walks 4m
E, 2 m S, 4m W and finally 2
m N. What is the total
distance traveled? What is the
total displacement?
■ Answer: Distance: 12 m
■ Displacement: 0 m
■ Use the diagram to determine the resulting
displacement and the distance traveled by the skier
during these three minutes.
■ Answer: Distance: ( 180m + 140 m + 100m) = 420 m
■ Displacement: 140 m rightward
SPEED
■ is a measure of how fast an object moves
■ rate at which distance is covered
■ measurement in terms of distance and time
■ In general, speed = distance/time
■ In symbols, v = d/t
■ units: m/s, km/h
INSTANTANEOUS SPEED
■ the speed at any given instant in time
■ speed at any particular instant
■ example: speed indicated by
speedometer
■ Average speed:
v = d/t
UNIFORM SPEED

Distance (m) 4 8 12 16 20 24

Time (s) 1 2 3 4 5 6
SAMPLE PROBLEM 2
■ What is the average speed of a person
running 60m in 4s?
■ Answer: 15 m/s
■ If a car moves with an average speed of
50km/h, how far would it travel in 5h?
■ Answer: 250 km
VELOCITY
■ how fast an in what direction an object
moves
■ a vector quantity
■ Note: A car that rounds a curve may have a
constant speed but it cannot have a constant
velocity because its direction changes as it
moves
Let’s Do It!
■ Perform the activity entitled Roll, Roll, and
Away!
■ Objectives:
- Calculate the acceleration of the can rolling
an inclined plane
- Describe the motion of an object given a
distance vs time or a distance vs time2 graph.
What to do?

1. Set up an inclined plane.

2. Mark the plane for every 20 cm and

label these as 20 cm, 40 cm and so on.
3. Measure the base and the height and
calculate the angle of inclination.
4. Roll the tin can from each labelled point
starting with the 20 cm mark.

5. Ask your partner to record the time (t) taken by the

tin can to travel each distance (d) down the plane

6. Perform three trials from each mark.

7. Use the table for your data.

8. Graph d vs t and then d vs t2

9. Answer the guide questions given.

GUIDE QUESTIONS:
Q1. How will you describe the graphs
of:
a. distance vs. time?
b. distance vs. time2?
Q2. What is the relationship between
distance and time of travel of the rolling
can?
GUIDE QUESTIONS:

Q3. What is the slope of d – t2 graph?

What quantity does the slope of d – t 2

graph represent? (Refer to the unit of

the slope)
Q4. What do the graphs of distance vs.
time and distance vs. time2suggest?
ACCELERATION
■ applies to both an increase or decrease in
velocity
■ a moving object undergoes acceleration when
its velocity changes (by changing its speed or
direction or by changing both)
■ Acceleration = change in velocity/change in
time
■ a= v/ t
■ Change is the difference between the final and the
initial values. In symbols,

v = Vf – Vi ; t = tf – ti
Therefore:

a = Vf – Vi
tf – ti
2
Unit: m/s
UNIFORM ACCELERATION

V (m/s) 4 8 12 16 20 24

Time (s) 1 2 3 4 5 6
VELOCITY-TIME GRAPH
■ Acceleration can be determined from the slope of a velocity
against the time graph
■ If the acceleration is constant, the resulting graph shows
straight line (velocity is directly proportional to time)
■ Slope = v/ t