Physics

Honors Science

Vector

A quantity that has magnitude and direction and that is usually represented by a line segment with the given direction and with a length representing the magnitude.

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* Velocity

Scalar

A quantity that only has magnitude not direction

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* Temperature

Distance

The magnitude or size of displacement between two positions

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* If a car travels 100 meters north and then turns right and travels another 300 meters east, then the total distance that the car traveled can be found simply by adding the two segments of length traveled together. In this example, the total distance the car traveled is 400 meters.

Displacement

The change in position of an object. It is a vector quantity and has a direction and magnitude. 

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* If a professor moves to the right relative to a whiteboard, or a passenger moves toward the rear of an airplane—then the object's position changes. This change in position is known as displacement.

Speed

The rate of change of position of an object in any direction.

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* If a car travels 70 miles in one hour, the car is traveling at a speed of 70 miles/hour (miles per hour).

Velocity

The direction of the movement of the body or the object.

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* The speed of a car traveling north on a highway, or the speed a rocket travels after launching.

Acceleration

The rate of change of velocity.

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* The falling of an apple, the moon orbiting around the earth, or when a car is stopped at the traffic lights.

Newton’s First Law

• Inertia

• Every object will remain at rest or in uniform motion in a straight line unless compelled to change its state by the action of an external force.

• Tightening of seat belts in a car when it stops quickly.

Newton’s Second Law

• Force

• The push or pull on an object with mass causes it to change its velocity.

• The force of a bat on the ball

Gravitational Potential Energy

• Energy an object possesses because of its position in a gravitational field.

• A car that is parked at the top of a hill.

Kinetic Energy

• The energy an object has because of its motion.

• A soaring baseball

Spring Potential Energy

• The potential energy stored as a result of the deformation of a particular elastic object, or a spring.

• A spring hanging vertically from the ceiling, with somebody pulling down on the other end.

Power

• The amount of energy transferred or converted per unit time.

• A 60-W light bulb, for example, expends 60 J of energy per second