Chapter 2

Motion in One Dimension

Dynamics
 Dynamics is the study of motion
and of physical concepts such as
force and mass.
 Kinematics is a part of dynamics
that describes motion without
regard to its causes.
 The motion of an object can be
described by displacement, velocity,
acceleration and time.
 Position
 Defined in terms of
a frame of
reference
 Frame of reference is
a choice of coordinate
axes that defines the
starting point for
measuring any
quantity e.g x- or y-
axis
Displacement
 Defined as the change in position

x  xf  xi

f stands for final and i stands for initial

 May be represented as y if vertical

 SI unit: meter (m)

Displacements (Cont’d…)
 Vector and Scalar
Quantities
 A Vector quantity is characterized by
having both a magnitude and a
direction e.g. velocity, displacement
 Generally denoted by boldfaced type
and an arrow over the letter
 + or – sign is sufficient for this chapter

 A scalar quantity has magnitude, but

no direction e.g. speed, distance
Displacement Isn’t
Distance
 The displacement of an object is
not the same as the distance it
travels
 Example: Throw a ball straight up and
then catch it at the same point you
released it

The distance is twice the height

The displacement is zero
Speed
 The average speed of an object over a
given time interval is the length of the
path it travels divided by the total
elapsed time.
total distance
Average speed 
total time
d
v 
t
 SI unit is meter per second m/s
Velocity
 Velocity is change of
displacement per unit time.
 Average velocity is rate at which
the displacement occurs
x xfi  x
v average  
t tfi  t
 SI unit: meter per second (m/s)
Velocity (cont’d…)
 Instantaneous velocity is the
time rate of change of
displacement at an instant time
(change of displacement per infinitesimal time
interval)

 SI unit: meter per second (m/s)

Speed vs. Velocity

 Cars on both paths have the same average

velocity since they had the same displacement
in the same time interval
 The car on the blue path will have a greater
average speed since the distance it traveled is
larger
Acceleration
 Acceleration is the time rate of
change of velocity
 Average acceleration is change of
velocity per unit time
v v fi  v
a 
t tfi  t
 SI unit: meter per second per
second (m/s²)
Acceleration (cont’d…)
 Instantaneous acceleration is the
time rate of change of velocity at
an instant time (change of velocity
per infinitesimal time interval)

 SI unit: meter per second per

second
MOTION GRAPHS
 Motion can be presented by a
displacement-time graph and
velocity-time graph
Displacement-Time graph
Displacement-time graph,
cont.
 In a displacement-time graph, the
gradient(slope) of the graph gives
you the velocity.
 Between ‘O’ and ‘A’ the object
moves with constant velocity
 Between ‘A’ and ‘B’, the object is
not moving and its velocity is zero.
Displacement-time graph,
cont.
 Between ‘B’ and ‘C’, the object
moves with constant velocity.
 Between ‘D’ and ‘E’, the object is
moving back to the original
position. The slope is negative
meaning that velocity of the object
is negative.
Velocity-Time Graph
Velocity-Time Graph, cont.
 The slope of velocity-time graph
gives you acceleration
 Between OA, the object moves
with uniform acceleration i.e its
velocity increases uniformly.
 Between AB, the object moves with
zero acceleration i.e its velocity is
constant.
Velocity-Time Graph, cont.
 Between BC, the slope is negative
 The object is moving with constant
negative acceleration
(deceleration)
 The velocity between BC is
decreasing uniformly.
 Kinematic Equations
 Equations for motion in a straight
line under constant acceleration.
Consider the velocity-time graph
below.
Kinematic Equations, cont.
 Recall that acceleration is equal to
the gradient of velocity-time graph
Kinematic Equations, cont.
 Making final velocity(v) the subject
of the formula, we have:

(equation 1)

 This is the first equation of motion

Kinematic Equations, cont.
 The area under velocity-time graph
gives you displacement covered by
an object during the time interval,
t.
 From the graph displacement(s) is
equal to the area under the
trapezium.
Kinematic Equations, cont.
 Therefore,

(equation 2)

 This is the second equation of

motion.
Kinematic Equations, cont.
 Substituting equation 1 into
equation 2 for v, we have:

 This reduces to:

(Eq. 3)
 Third equation of motion.
Kinematic Equations, cont.
 Making “t” the subject of the
formula in equation 1, we get:

 Then substitute “t” into equation 2,

we get the last equation of motion.
Problem-Solving Hints
 Read the problem
 Draw a diagram
 Choose a coordinate system, label initial
and final points, indicate a positive direction
for velocities and accelerations
 Label all quantities, be sure all the units
are consistent
 Convert if necessary
 Choose the appropriate kinematic
equation
Problem-Solving Hints,
cont
 Solve for the unknowns
 You may have to solve two equations
for two unknowns
 Check your results
 Estimate and compare
 Check units
Example 2.1
 A race car starting from rest
accelerates at a rate of . What
is the velocity of the car after it
has travelled 100 ft? Given that
1m=3.281 ft.
We are given the following quantities, We apply the following equation of motion:

𝑣𝑖 = 0 𝑚/𝑠, 𝑎 = +5 𝑚/𝑠2, 𝑣𝑓2 = 𝑣𝑖 2 + 2𝑎∆𝑥

∆𝑥 = 30.50 𝑚 𝑣𝑓2 = 02 + 2(5𝑚/𝑠2)(30.5 𝑚)
We want to find final velocity 𝑣𝑓
𝑣𝑓 = ∓ඥ 305 𝑚2/𝑠2 = ∓17.5 𝑚/𝑠

The car is travelling to the right; we choose

+17.5 m/s as the correct solution for final
velocity 𝑣𝑓.
Free Fall
 A freely falling object is any object
moving freely under the influence of
gravity alone, regardless of its initial
motion.
 Objects thrown upward or downward
and those released from rest are all
considered freely falling.
Acceleration due to
Gravity
 Symbolized by g
 g = 9.80 m/s²
 g is always directed downward
 toward the center of the earth
 Ignoring air resistance and assuming g
doesn’t vary with altitude over short
vertical distances, then the motion of a
freely falling object is the same as
motion in one dimension under constant
acceleration.
 Free Fall, cont.
 This means that the kinematic
equations developed in the previous
slides can be applied.
 It’s conventional to define up as the
+y-direction and to use y as the
position variable. In that case the
acceleration
 For a freely falling object, ,
since it starts from rest.
 For a downward motion a=g
Example 2.2
 A golf ball is released from rest at
top of a very tall building.
Neglecting air resistance, calculate
the position and velocity of the ball
after 1.00 s.
 Solution
Taking the downward motion to be positive we have:

𝑦𝑖 = 0 𝑎𝑡 𝑡 = 0,𝑣𝑖 = 0,𝑎 = 𝑔 = 9.8 𝑚/𝑠2

∆𝑦= 𝑣𝑖 𝑡 + 2𝑎𝑡2
1

𝑦= 2ሺ 9.8ሻ (1.00)2
1

𝑦= +4.90 𝑚

𝑣𝑓 = 𝑣𝑖 + 𝑎𝑡

𝑣𝑓 = 0 + 9.8 𝑚/𝑠2(1.00𝑠)

∴ 𝑣𝑓 = 9.8 𝑚/𝑠

The final velocity is 9.8 m/s downward

Example 2.3
 A ball is thrown from the top of the
building with an initial velocity of
20.0m/s straight upward, at an
initial height of 50m above the
ground. The ball just misses the
edge of the roof on its way down.
Determine:
Example 2.3, cont
a. The time needed for the ball to
reach its maximum height
b. The maximum height
c. The time needed for the ball to
return to the height from which it
was thrown and the velocity of the
ball at that instant
d. The time needed for the ball to
reach the ground
Example 2.3, cont
e. The velocity and the position at
t=5.00s.
Solution
sketch
Solution, cont.
a. The time needed for the ball to
reach its maximum height. From
the question; velocity at
maximum time(v)=0,
. Then we can substitute into:
Solution, cont.
b.The maximum height, we can use:
and t= 2.04s
Solution, cont.
c. When the stone is back, y=0,
then,
Solution, cont.
 Substitute the time into
to get velocity:
Solution, cont.
 The time needed for the ball to
reach the ground: set y= -50, then
apply the quadratic formula and
take the positive root:
Solution, cont.
e. The velocity and the position at
t=5.00s. We substitute values into
equations i and

ii