Study Notes on Displacement and Distance

Key Concepts in Displacement and Distance

• Displacement: The shortest path from the initial to the final position, represented as a vector.

  • Example 1: Davia walks 3 km north and 4 km east:
  • Displacement Calculation:
    • Use Pythagorean theorem: $d = \sqrt{(3^2 + 4^2)} = \sqrt{25} = 5$ km.

• Example 2: Amy runs 2 miles south, then 3 miles north:

  • Displacement Calculation:
  • Net Displacement:
    • 3 miles north - 2 miles south = 1 mile north.

• Example 3: Jermaine runs 2 laps around a 400 m track:

  • Distance Calculation:
  • Total Distance = 2 laps x 400 m/lap = 800 m.
  • Displacement:
  • Since he ends up at the starting point, displacement = 0 m.