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1 LA Lecture 1 - Pre-Read

A vector is a quantity defined by both magnitude and direction, while a scalar has only magnitude. Key examples of vector quantities include displacement and velocity, whereas scalar quantities include temperature and mass. The document also explains vector operations such as addition, subtraction, dot product, and cross product, along with the distinction between speed and velocity.

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13 views4 pages

1 LA Lecture 1 - Pre-Read

A vector is a quantity defined by both magnitude and direction, while a scalar has only magnitude. Key examples of vector quantities include displacement and velocity, whereas scalar quantities include temperature and mass. The document also explains vector operations such as addition, subtraction, dot product, and cross product, along with the distinction between speed and velocity.

Uploaded by

skushal.mys
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Pre-read Material on Vectors

What is a Vector?

A vector is a quantity that has both magnitude (size) and direction. Vectors are often
represented graphically by an arrow, where the length of the arrow represents the
magnitude, and the arrow's direction shows the vector's direction.

For example, displacement and velocity are vector quantities as they both describe
magnitude and a specific direction. In the below image, we show a velocity vector v,
2v and -0.6v.

Difference Between Vector and Scalar

● Vector: A vector quantity has both magnitude and direction. Examples include
velocity, force, and displacement.
● Scalar: A scalar quantity has only magnitude and no direction. Examples
include temperature, mass, and speed.

Examples of Scalar and Vector Quantities


● Scalar: Temperature, mass, speed, energy.
● Vector: Displacement, velocity, acceleration, force.

Difference Between Speed and Velocity

Speed is a scalar quantity that represents the rate at which an object is moving,
irrespective of its direction (e.g., 50 km/hr).

Velocity, however, is a vector quantity that includes both the rate and direction of
motion (e.g., 50 km/hr east). This is why velocity is represented as a vector: it
describes both how fast and in which direction.

Why Force is a Vector Quantity

Force is a vector because it requires both magnitude and direction to fully describe its
effect.

Knowing only the magnitude of a force (e.g., 5 N) doesn't tell us where it's acting or in
what direction.

For example, applying a 5 N force to the left on an object produces a different result
than applying a 5 N force upward.

Including direction helps determine the net effect on the object.

Norm (Magnitude) of a Vector

The norm (or magnitude) of a vector measures the "length" of the vector.

For a vector 𝐴 = (𝐴𝑥, 𝐴𝑦, 𝐴𝑧), the magnitude |A| is given by the formula:

2 2 2
|𝐴| = √(𝐴𝑥 + 𝐴𝑦 + 𝐴𝑧 )
Basic Arithmetic Operations on Vectors

Vectors can be added, subtracted, and multiplied. Multiplication can involve a scalar,
or two vectors can be multiplied using the dot product or cross product.

For further reading, see this resource:


https://people.math.harvard.edu/~jjchen/math21a/handouts/vector-ops.html

Vector Addition

- In i, j, k form:

^ ^ ^
𝐴 + 𝐵 = (𝐴𝑥 + 𝐵𝑥) 𝑖 + (𝐴𝑦 + 𝐵𝑦) 𝑗 + (𝐴𝑧 + 𝐵𝑧) 𝑘

Vector Subtraction

- In i, j, k form:

^ ^ ^
𝐴 + 𝐵 = (𝐴𝑥 − 𝐵𝑥) 𝑖 + (𝐴𝑦 − 𝐵𝑦) 𝑗 + (𝐴𝑧 − 𝐵𝑧) 𝑘

Dot Product

- Formula: A · B = |A| |B| cos(θ)

In i, j, k form:

𝐴. 𝐵 = 𝐴𝑥 * 𝐵𝑥 + 𝐴𝑦 * 𝐵𝑦 + 𝐴𝑧 * 𝐵𝑧
where
^^ ^^ ^ ^
𝑖.𝑖 = 1, 𝑗.𝑗 = 1, 𝑘. 𝑘 = 1

^^ ^ ^ ^^
𝑖.𝑗 = 0, 𝑗.𝑘 = 0, 𝑘.𝑖 = 0

Cross Product

- Formula: A × B = |A| |B| sin(θ)

In i, j, k form:

^ ^ ^
𝐴 𝑋 𝐵 = (𝐴𝑦𝐵𝑧 − 𝐴𝑧𝐵𝑦) 𝑖 − (𝐴𝑥𝐵𝑧 − 𝐴𝑧𝐵𝑥) 𝑗 + (𝐴𝑥𝐵𝑦 − 𝐴𝑦𝐵𝑥) 𝑘

where,

^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
𝑖 X 𝑖 = 0, 𝑗 X 𝑗 = 0, 𝑘X𝑘=0

^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
𝑖 X 𝑗 = 𝑘 , 𝑗 X 𝑘 = 𝑖, 𝑘X𝑖=𝑗

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