| Derivation/Formula | Reasoning |
|---|---|
| \[\vec{a} = \frac{\Delta \vec{v}}{\Delta t}\] | Acceleration is defined as the rate of change of velocity. |
| \[\vec{v} \text{ in } +x,\; |\vec{v}| \text{ decreases}\] | Object moves along the \(+x\) axis while its speed (magnitude of velocity) gets smaller. |
| \[\Delta \vec{v} = \vec{v}_{\text{final}} – \vec{v}_{\text{initial}}\] | Since the final speed is lower, \(\Delta \vec{v}\) points opposite the motion, i.e. in \(-x\). |
| \[\therefore\; \vec{a} \text{ is toward } -x\] | Acceleration has the same direction as \(\Delta \vec{v}\); thus it must be in the \(-x\) direction. |
| \[(a)\; a = 0\;?\; \times\] | Zero acceleration would keep speed constant, so the object would not slow. |
| \[(b)\; \vec{a} \text{ in } +x\;?\; \times\] | An acceleration in the \(+x\) direction would increase the object’s speed, not decrease it. |
| \[(c)\; \vec{a} \text{ in } -x\; \checkmark\] | This correctly provides a deceleration (opposite to velocity), making the object slow down. |
| \[(d)\; |\vec{a}| > |\vec{v}|\;?\; \times\] | Velocity has units \(\text{m/s}\) and acceleration \(\text{m/s}^2\); directly comparing their magnitudes is not physically meaningful for this question. |
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A blue sphere and a red sphere with the same diameter are released from rest at the top of a ramp. The red sphere takes a longer time to reach the bottom of the ramp. The spheres are then rolled off a horizontal table at the same time with the same speed and fall freely to the floor. Which sphere reaches the floor first?
A projectile has the least speed at what point in its path?
Person A throws a ball horizontally from a cliff \( 20 \) \( \text{m} \) tall at \( 12 \) \( \text{m/s} \). Person B is running to the right on the ground and catches the ball at the same height it would’ve landed after running \( 15 \) \( \text{m} \). How fast was Person B running?
A rock is thrown vertically upward with a velocity of \( 20 \, \text{m/s} \) from the edge of a bridge \( 42 \, \text{m} \) above a river.
A rock is dropped from the top of a tall tower. Half a second later another rock, twice as massive as the first, is dropped. Ignoring air resistance what is the correct choice?
A mass moving with a constant speed \( u \) encounters a rough surface and comes to a stop. The mass takes a time \( t \) to stop after encountering the rough surface. The coefficient of dynamic friction between the rough surface and the mass is \( 0.40 \). Which of the following expressions gives the initial speed \( u \)?
A rubber ball bounces on the ground. After each bounce, the ball reaches one-half the height of the bounce before it. If the time the ball was in the air between the first and second bounce was 1 second. What would be the time between the second and third bounce?
A rocket is sent to shoot down an invading spacecraft that is hovering at an altitude of \( 1500 \, \text{m} \). The rocket is launched with an initial velocity of \( 180 \, \text{m/s} \). Find the following:
You drive \( 4 \) \( \text{km} \) at \( 30 \) \( \text{km/h} \) and then another \( 4 \) \( \text{km} \) at \( 50 \) \( \text{km/h} \). What is your average speed for the whole \( 8 \) \( \text{km} \) trip?
An ice sled powered by a rocket engine starts from rest on a large frozen lake and accelerates at \( +13.0 \, \text{m/s}^2 \). At \( t_1 \), the rocket engine is shut down and the sled moves with constant velocity \( v \) until \( t_2 \). The total distance traveled by the sled is \( 5.30 \times 10^3 \, \text{m} \) and the total time is \( 90.0 \, \text{s} \).
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| Kinematics | Forces |
|---|---|
| \(\Delta x = v_i t + \frac{1}{2} at^2\) | \(F = ma\) |
| \(v = v_i + at\) | \(F_g = \frac{G m_1 m_2}{r^2}\) |
| \(v^2 = v_i^2 + 2a \Delta x\) | \(f = \mu N\) |
| \(\Delta x = \frac{v_i + v}{2} t\) | \(F_s =-kx\) |
| \(v^2 = v_f^2 \,-\, 2a \Delta x\) |
| Circular Motion | Energy |
|---|---|
| \(F_c = \frac{mv^2}{r}\) | \(KE = \frac{1}{2} mv^2\) |
| \(a_c = \frac{v^2}{r}\) | \(PE = mgh\) |
| \(T = 2\pi \sqrt{\frac{r}{g}}\) | \(KE_i + PE_i = KE_f + PE_f\) |
| \(W = Fd \cos\theta\) |
| Momentum | Torque and Rotations |
|---|---|
| \(p = mv\) | \(\tau = r \cdot F \cdot \sin(\theta)\) |
| \(J = \Delta p\) | \(I = \sum mr^2\) |
| \(p_i = p_f\) | \(L = I \cdot \omega\) |
| Simple Harmonic Motion | Fluids |
|---|---|
| \(F = -kx\) | \(P = \frac{F}{A}\) |
| \(T = 2\pi \sqrt{\frac{l}{g}}\) | \(P_{\text{total}} = P_{\text{atm}} + \rho gh\) |
| \(T = 2\pi \sqrt{\frac{m}{k}}\) | \(Q = Av\) |
| \(x(t) = A \cos(\omega t + \phi)\) | \(F_b = \rho V g\) |
| \(a = -\omega^2 x\) | \(A_1v_1 = A_2v_2\) |
| Constant | Description |
|---|---|
| [katex]g[/katex] | Acceleration due to gravity, typically [katex]9.8 , \text{m/s}^2[/katex] on Earth’s surface |
| [katex]G[/katex] | Universal Gravitational Constant, [katex]6.674 \times 10^{-11} , \text{N} \cdot \text{m}^2/\text{kg}^2[/katex] |
| [katex]\mu_k[/katex] and [katex]\mu_s[/katex] | Coefficients of kinetic ([katex]\mu_k[/katex]) and static ([katex]\mu_s[/katex]) friction, dimensionless. Static friction ([katex]\mu_s[/katex]) is usually greater than kinetic friction ([katex]\mu_k[/katex]) as it resists the start of motion. |
| [katex]k[/katex] | Spring constant, in [katex]\text{N/m}[/katex] |
| [katex] M_E = 5.972 \times 10^{24} , \text{kg} [/katex] | Mass of the Earth |
| [katex] M_M = 7.348 \times 10^{22} , \text{kg} [/katex] | Mass of the Moon |
| [katex] M_M = 1.989 \times 10^{30} , \text{kg} [/katex] | Mass of the Sun |
| Variable | SI Unit |
|---|---|
| [katex]s[/katex] (Displacement) | [katex]\text{meters (m)}[/katex] |
| [katex]v[/katex] (Velocity) | [katex]\text{meters per second (m/s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]a[/katex] (Acceleration) | [katex]\text{meters per second squared (m/s}^2\text{)}[/katex] |
| [katex]t[/katex] (Time) | [katex]\text{seconds (s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]m[/katex] (Mass) | [katex]\text{kilograms (kg)}[/katex] |
| Variable | Derived SI Unit |
|---|---|
| [katex]F[/katex] (Force) | [katex]\text{newtons (N)}[/katex] |
| [katex]E[/katex], [katex]PE[/katex], [katex]KE[/katex] (Energy, Potential Energy, Kinetic Energy) | [katex]\text{joules (J)}[/katex] |
| [katex]P[/katex] (Power) | [katex]\text{watts (W)}[/katex] |
| [katex]p[/katex] (Momentum) | [katex]\text{kilogram meters per second (kgm/s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]\omega[/katex] (Angular Velocity) | [katex]\text{radians per second (rad/s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]\tau[/katex] (Torque) | [katex]\text{newton meters (Nm)}[/katex] |
| [katex]I[/katex] (Moment of Inertia) | [katex]\text{kilogram meter squared (kgm}^2\text{)}[/katex] |
| [katex]f[/katex] (Frequency) | [katex]\text{hertz (Hz)}[/katex] |
Metric Prefixes
Example of using unit analysis: Convert 5 kilometers to millimeters.
Start with the given measurement: [katex]\text{5 km}[/katex]
Use the conversion factors for kilometers to meters and meters to millimeters: [katex]\text{5 km} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{m}}{1 \, \text{km}} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{mm}}{1 \, \text{m}}[/katex]
Perform the multiplication: [katex]\text{5 km} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{m}}{1 \, \text{km}} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{mm}}{1 \, \text{m}} = 5 \times 10^3 \times 10^3 \, \text{mm}[/katex]
Simplify to get the final answer: [katex]\boxed{5 \times 10^6 \, \text{mm}}[/katex]
Prefix | Symbol | Power of Ten | Equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|
Pico- | p | [katex]10^{-12}[/katex] | |
Nano- | n | [katex]10^{-9}[/katex] | |
Micro- | µ | [katex]10^{-6}[/katex] | |
Milli- | m | [katex]10^{-3}[/katex] | |
Centi- | c | [katex]10^{-2}[/katex] | |
Deci- | d | [katex]10^{-1}[/katex] | |
(Base unit) | – | [katex]10^{0}[/katex] | |
Deca- or Deka- | da | [katex]10^{1}[/katex] | |
Hecto- | h | [katex]10^{2}[/katex] | |
Kilo- | k | [katex]10^{3}[/katex] | |
Mega- | M | [katex]10^{6}[/katex] | |
Giga- | G | [katex]10^{9}[/katex] | |
Tera- | T | [katex]10^{12}[/katex] |
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