AP Physics Mechanics C Questions - Unit 1

What is position? What is its symbol?

location with respect to an origin; x

What is displacement?What is its symbol?What is its standard unit?

shortest distance between 2 points with direction; delta x; m

What is the difference between distance and displacement?

distance- total distance depends on path taken; displacement- only depends on intial and final endpoints, has direction

What is the difference between point quantities and interval quantities of space/time?

Point quantities are coordinates that locate the object, interval quantites are lengths

What are the point quantities in space?In time?

space- position; time- clock reading

What are the interval quantities in space?In time?

space- displacement, distance; time- time interval

What is the difference between clock reading and time interval? What is their standard unit?

clock readings is a point in time, time interval is a length of time, s

In a track diagram, what indicates the speed of an object?

distance between two successive tracks

What is magnitude?

size of a quantity

What is the difference between a vector and a scalar?

scalars only have magnitude, vectors have magnitude and direction

What is the difference between instantaneous and average quantities?

instantaneous- calculated at a point; average- calculated over an interval

What is the difference between speed and velocity?

velocity has direction

What does the magnitude of acceleration indicate?

how quickly velocity is changing

What is the rule to determine the direction of acceleration given velocity vectors?

It is in the same direction as the net pull

What does the sign of acceleration indicate?

direction of a-arrow (left or right, up or down)

When is a new stage created in a multi-stage problem?

when the acceleration changes

What is free fall?

falling where gravity is the only force

What is the velocity at the peak for an object thrown straight up?

0 m/s

How does the speed on the way up compare to the speed on the way down when an object in free fall reaches the same elevation?

same

How does the time to the peak compare to the total time in the air for an object that is thrown up and caught at the same point (in free fall)?

half

What’s the difference between an object that is dropped and one that is thrown?

dropped: v0 = 0; thrown v0 != 0

List the kinematic functions from low to high order.

x(t), v(t), a(t)

What type of functions do integrals always produce?

delta functions

What must be true about the motion of an object at a turning point or U-turn?

v = 0