48 Chapter 3 Vectors QUESTIONS 4. In 1969, three Apollo astronauts left Cape Canaveral, went to the Moon and back, and splashed down at a selected Jandingsite in the Pacific Ocean; see Fig. An admiral bid them goodbye at the Cape and then sailed to the Pacific (Ocean in an aireraft carrier to pick them up. Compare the displacements ofthe astronauts and the admiral Figure 21 Question 1 2. A dog runs 100 m south, 100 m east, and 100 m north, ‘ending up at his starting point, his displacement for the entire trip being zero. Whereis his starting point? One clear answer is the North Pole but there is another solution, lo- cated near the South Pole. Describe 3. Can two vectors having different magnitudes be combined 1 give a zero resultant? Can three vectors? 4, Cana vector have ze0 magnitude ifone ofits componentsis not z2r0? '5. Can the sum of the magnitudes oftwo vectors ever be equal 10 the magnitude of the sum ofthese two vectors? 66. Can the magnitude of the difference between two vectors ver be greater than the magnitude of either veetor? Can it ‘be greater than the magnitude oftheir sum? Give examples. 17. Suppose that dd, + d>. Does this mean that we must have either d > d, or d= d,? If not, explain why. PROBLEMS ‘Section 3-2 Adding Vectors: Graphical Method 1, Consider two displacements, one of magnitude 3 m and another of magnitude 4 m. Show how the displacement vectors may be combined to get a resultant displacement of ‘magnitude (a) 7 m, (b) 1 m, and (€) 5 m. 8, Ifthree vectors add up to zer0, they must all bein the same plane, Make this plausible 9. Do the unit vectors, j, and k have units? 10, Explain in what sense a vector equation contains more in- formation than a scalar equation, 11, Name several scalar quantities. Does the value of a scalar quantity depend on the coordinate system you choose? 12, You can order events in time. For example, event 6 may precede event cbut follow event a, giving usa time order of| events a,b,c. Hence, there isa sense of time, distinguishing past, present, and future. Is time a vector therefore? If not, why not? 13. Do the commutative and associative laws apply to vector subtraction? 14, Can a scalar product be a negative quantity? 15, (a) fab = 0, doesit follow that a and b are perpendicular to one another? (8) I'a-b= ac, does it follow that b = €? 16. Ifa xb=0, must a and b be parallel to each other? Is the converse true? 17. A vector a les parallel tothe Earths rotation axis, pointing fiom south to north. A second vector b points vertically ‘upward at your location. What is the direction of the vector ‘a Xb? At what locations on the Earth's surface is the magni tude of the vector a Xba maximum? A minimum? 18, Must you specify a coordinate system when you (a)add two vectors, (6) form their scalar product, (c) form their vector product, or (d) find their components? 419. (a) Show that all the components ofa vector are reversed in direction, then the vector itself is reversed in direction, (® Show that ifthe componentsof the two vectors forming vector product are all reversed, then the vector product is not changed. (¢ Isa vector product, then, a vector? 20, We have discussed addition, subtraction, and multiplica- tion of vectors. Why do you suppose that we do not discuss division of vectors? Is it possible to define such an opera- tion? 21. Its conventional to use, as we did the right-hand rule for vector algebra. What changes would be required if a lef- handed convention were adopted instead? 22. (a) Convince yourself that the vector product of two polar vectorsis an axial vector. (b) What is the vector product of polar vector with an axial vector? 2. What are the properties of two vectors a and b such that (@)a+b=canda+b=ci(6)a+b=a—b(da+bme and a?-+ b= c2?3. A woman walks 250 m in the direction 35” east of north, ‘then 170:m directly east. (a) Using graphical methods, find ‘her final displacement from the starting point. (6) Compare the magnitude of her displacement with the distance she walked. 4. A person walks in the following pattern: 3.1 km north, then 24 km west and finally $.2 km south. (a) Construct the vector diagram that represents this motion. (b) How farand in what direction would a bird ly ina straight line to arrive atthe same final point? '8, Two vectorsa and bareadded. Show graphically with vector iagrams that the magnitude of the resultant cannot be ‘greater than a + or smaller than |a ~ bj, where the vertical bars signify absolute value. 6. Acaris driven east fora distance of $4 km, then north for 32 ‘km, and then in a direction 28° east of north for 27 km. Draw the vector diagram and determine the total displace- ‘ment ofthe car from its starting point. 7. Vector a has a magnitude of $.2 units and is directed east. ‘Vector b has ¢ magnitude of 43 units and is directed 35° ‘west of north. By constructing vector diagrams, find the ‘magnitudes and directions of (a) a+ b, and (b)a—b. 8. A golfer takes three putts to get his ball into the hole once he is on the green, The first putt displaces the ball 12 ft north, the second 6.0 ft southeast, and the third 3.0 ft southwest. ‘What displacement was needed to get the ball into the hole con the frst putt? Draw the vector diagram. 9, A bank in downtown Boston is robbed (se the map in Fig. 22), To elude polics, the thieves escape by helicopter, mak- ing three successive Hights described by the following dis- placements: 20 mi, 45” south of east; 33 mi, 26" north of ‘west; 16 mi, 18° east ofsouth. At the end ofthe third fight they are captured. In what town are they apprehended? (Use the graphical method to add these displacements on the map.) Problems 49 ‘Section 3-3 Components of Vectors 10, (a) What are the components ofa vectora in the xy plane if its direction is 252° counterclockwise from the positive x axis and its magnitude is 7.34 units? (6) The xcomponent of ‘a certain vector is ~25 units and the y component is +43 ‘units. What are the magnitude of the vector and the angle ‘between its direction and the positive x axis? 1. Aheavy piece of machinery is raised by siding it 13 m along 1 plank oriented at 22° to the horizontal, as shown in Fig. 23. (a) How high above its original position is it raised? (8) How faci it moved horizontally? o <“\ on Figure 23 Problem 11 12, The minute hand ofa wall clock measures | 1.3 cm fromaxis 10 tip. What isthe displacement vector of stip (a) from a quarter after the hour to half past, () in the next half hour, and (c) in the next hour? 13. A person desires to reach a point that is 3.42 km from her present location and ina direction thatis 35.0" northof cas. However, she must travel along strets that go either north~ south or east-west, What is the minimum distance she ‘could travel to reach her destination? 14, A ship sets out to sil to a point 124 km due north. An ‘unexpected storm blows the ship toa point 72.6 km to the north and 31-4 km tothe east ofits starting point. How far, nd in what direction, must it now sail to reach its original, destination? 15, Rock faults are ruptures along which opposite faces of rock have moved past cach other, parallel to the fracture surface. Earthquakes often accompany this movement. In Fig. 24 points and B coincided before faulting. The component of ‘the net displacement 4B parallel tothe horizontal surface fault lines called the strike-slip (AC). The component ofthe net displacement along the steepest ine ofthe fault plane is the dip-lip (AD). (a) What isthe net shift ifthe strike-slip is 22 mand the dipslipis 17 m? (6)Ifthe fault planeisinclined 52° to the horizontal, what i the net vertical displacement (of B as a result ofthe faulting in (a)? Figure 24 Problem 15.50° Chapter 3 Vectors Attime 2, yre25 Problem 16, tine s2 16. A wheel witha radius of 45 em rolls without slipping longa horizontal floor, as shown in Fig. 25. Pisa dot painted on the rim of the wheel At time 4, Pis atthe point of contact between the wheel and the lor. Ata later time f, the wheel hhas rolled through one-half of a revolution. What is the displacement of P during this interval? 17. Aroom has the dimensions 10 X 12fX 14 ft. A fy start- ingat one comer ends up at a diametrically opposite comer. (@) Find the displacement vector in a frame with coordinate ‘axes parallel to the edges ofthe room. (b) Whats the magni- tude of the displacement? (c) Could the length of the path traveled by the fly be less than this distance? Greater than this distance? Equal to this distance? (d) Ifthe fly walks rather than fies, what isthe length ofthe shortest path itcan take? ‘Section 3-4 Adding Vectors: Component Method 18, (a) Whatis the sum in unit vector notation ofthe two vectors a= Si+ 3j and b=—3i + 2)? (6) What are the magnitude and direction of a+b? 19, Two vectorsare given by a = 4i~ 3} + kand b= —i+j-+ 4k, Find (a) a+b, (0) a~b, and (6) a vector € such that a-bt+e=0. 20, Given two vectors, a= 4i— 3) and b= 6i + 8}, find the magnitudes and directions (with the +x axis) of (2), (6), (a+b, (4) b—a, and (e) 21. (a) A man leaves his front door, walks 1400 m east, 2100 m north, and then takes a penny from his pocket and drops it from a cliff 48 m high. Ina coordinate system in which the positive x,y, and zaxcs point east, north, and up, the origin being the location ofthe penny asthe man leaves his front door, write down an expression, using unit vectors, forthe displacement ofthe penny. (b) The man returns to his front door, following a different path on the return trip. What is his resultant displacement for the round trip? 22, A particle undergoes three successive displacements in a plane, as follows: 4.13 m southwest, 5.26 m east, and 5.94 m {na direction 64.0° north of east. Choose the x axis pointing cast and the y axis pointing north and find (a) the compo- nents ofeach displacement, (b) the componentsoftheresult- ant displacement, (c) the magnitude and direction of the resultant displacement, and (d) the displacement that would be required to bring the particle back to the starting point. 23. Two vectors a and b have equal magnitudes of 12.7 ‘They are oriented as shown in Fig. 26 and their vector sum ist. Find (a) the xand y components ofr, (6) the magnitude of, and (0) the angle r makes with the +x axis 24, A radar station detects a missile approaching from the east. ‘At first contact, the range tothe missile is 12,000 ft at 40.0" above the horizon, The misslis tracked for another 123° in the east-west plane, the range a final contact being 25,800 Figure 26 Figure 27" Problem 24, {i see Fig. 27. Find the displacement ofthe missile during the period of radar contact. 25, Two vectors of magnitudes @ and b make an angle 6 with cach other when placed til total, Prove, by taking compo- nents along two perpendicular axes, that the magnitude of their sum is = NaF OF Bab 0058. 26, Prove that two vectors must have equal magnitudes if their sum is perpendicular to ther difference. 27. (a) Using unit vectors along three cube edges, express the oot Also “San 22 <0, Prove these two statements by considering the sum of N vectors ofequal length, each vector makingan angleof2z/N with that preceding. Section 3-5 Multiplication of Vectors 30, A vectord nasa magnitude of2.6 m and points north. What are the magnitudes and directions of the vectors (a) ~ (4/20, (¢) =2.54, and (d) 5.047[3. Show for any vector a that (a) a+a= a? and (0) aXa=0. 32. A vector a of magnitude 12 units and another vector b of ‘magnitude 5.8 units point in directions difering by 55 Find (a the scalar product ofthe wo vectors and (b) the vector product 438, Two vectors, rand, ein the xy plane. Their magnitudes are 45 and 7.3 units, respectively, whereas their directions are 320° and8S° measured counterclockwise rom the pos- tive xaxis. What ae the values ofc) r-s and (6) XS? 34. Find (a) “north” cross “wes.” (6) “down” dot “south,” (9 "east ross "up," (“west dot “west,"and() “south” oss “south.” Let each vector have unit magnitude. 35, Given two vectors, a=a,i+a,j tak and b= b+ +) + 0,k, prove thatthe scalar product a-bisgiven interms ofthe components by Eq 15. %, Given two vector, a= a,i-+a,i+ ack and b= 5+ ++ bak, prove tat the vetor product a xb is given in terms of the components by Ea 17. 37. Show that ax ban be expressed by 3X 3 determinant as ijk nb, Od 238, Use Eqs. 13 and 15 to calculate the ange betwoea the two vectors = 31+ 3}+ 3k and b= 2i+)+ 3k. 39, Thee vector are given by a= 31+ 3)—2k, axb= 4j+2k, and c= 2+23+k Find (a) a-(bxo, (ae +6), and ()ax(b+0. 40, (2) Calculate r= a~b +c, where a= Si+4j— 6x, ~2+2)+ 3k angle between: and b. 4. Throe vectors add to zero, as in the right triangle of Fig. 28. Calculate (a) a°b, (b) ave, and (¢) bre 42. Three vectors add to zero, asin Fig. 28. Calculate (a) a b, (Waxe, and ()bxe, and c= 4i-+3)+2k. (8) Calculate the ind the + zaxis.(c)Find theangle between Figure 28 Problems 41 an 48. Vector lis in the yz plane 63.0° from the +y axis with a positive z component and bas magnitude 3.20 units. Vector blies in the xz plane 48.0° from the +.xaxis witha positive > component and has magnitude 1.40 units. Find (a) a-b, (®) aX, and (c) the angle between a and b. 44, (@) We have seen that the commutative law does notapply to vector products; that is, a xb does not equal b xa. Show that the commutative law does apply to scalar products; that is a+b bra. (b) Show that the distributive law applies to both scalar products and vector products; that is, show that albtomabtae Problems 51 and that axbte=axb+axc (c)Does the associative law apply to vector products; thatis, does a (bX) equal (ab) Xe? (d) Does it make any sense to talk about an associative law for scalar products? Show that the area ofthe triangle contained between the vectorsa and bin Fig, 29 is {ja bl, where the vertical bars signify magnitude. 46, Show that the magnitude ofa vector product gives numeri- cally the area of the parallelogram formed with the two component vectors as sides (se Fig. 29). Does this suggest hhow an element of area oriented in space could be repre- sented by a vector? 45, Figure 29 Problems 45 and 46. 47. Show that a-(b cis equal in magnitude o the volume of the parallelepiped formed on the three vectorsa, b, and ¢as, shown in Fig. 30 Figure 30 Problem 47. 448, Two vectors a and b have components, in arbitrary units, a, = 32, a, = 1.6; by = 0.50, y= 4.5. (a) Find the angle between a and b. (b) Find the components ofa vector ¢ that isperpendicular toa, isin the xy plane, and hasa magnitude of 0 units. 49, Find the angles between the body diagonals of a cube. See Problem 27. ‘50, The three vectors shown in Fig. 31 have magnitudes a = 3, b= 4,c= 10.(a) Calculate the xand ycomponents ofthese -vectors. (6) Find the numbers pand gsuch thate = pa + qb. y Figure 31 Problem 50, ‘Section 3-6 Vector Laws in Physics S51. Use Fig. 106 to derive Eqs. 18.52 Chapter 3 Vectors 52, Avectora with a magnitude of |7 misdirected 56° counter- $3. Figure 33 shows two vectors a and b and two systems of clockwise from the +» axis, as shown in Fig. 32.) What ‘coordinates which differ in thatthe x and x” axes and the 7 are the components a and a, of the vector? (b) A second and y’ axes each make an angle f with each other. Prove coordinate system is inclined by 18° with respect tothe first. analytically that a-+ b has the same magnitude and diree- ‘What are the components a, and a, inthis “primed” coor. mn no matter which system is used to carry out theanalysis, inate system? (Hint: Use Egs. 18) Figure 32. Problem $2 : Figure 33 Problem 53,