Chapter2: Motion in a Straight Line

Section 3: Velocity Vector, Average

Velocity, and Speed
 WHAT WE WILL LEARN
➢ We will define the concepts of instantaneous velocity and average velocity
 2.3 Velocity Vector, Average Velocity, and Speed
In everyday speech the words “speed” and “velocity” are often used interchangeably,
but, in physics “speed” refers to a scalar and “velocity” to a vector.
➢ The x-component of the velocity vector 𝑣𝑥, is the change in position in a given time
interval divided by that time interval, ∆x/∆t.
➢ Velocity can change from moment to moment. ഥ𝒙 =
𝒗
∆𝒙
∆𝒕
➢ The x-component of the average velocity, 𝑣𝑥ҧ :

➢ A bar above a symbol is the notation for averaging over a finite time interval.
➢ The instantaneous velocity, is the time derivative of the displacement.
➢ For the x-component of the velocity vector, this implies
We can now introduce the velocity vector, v, as the vector for
which each component is the time derivative of the corresponding
component of the position vector,
We can calculate the average velocity of the object by finding the change in position
between two points and divide by the time it takes to go from x1 to x2. In figure a
∆𝑥
𝑣ҧ1 = 1 , in figure b
∆𝑡1
∆𝑥2
𝑣ҧ2 = .
∆𝑡2
And in Figure c,
the instantaneous velocity,
𝑑
v(t3) = 𝑥 |𝑡=𝑡3
𝑑𝑡
The velocity is is represented by the slope of
the blue line tangent to the red curve at t = t3.
Velocity is a vector, pointing in the same direction as the displacement vector.
 SOLUTION
take the time derivative of the position vector:

➢ In the Figure, the position as a function of time is shown in

blue, and the velocity as a function of time is shown in red.
➢ At t=0 the velocity is -10.1 m/s while at t = 10 s, the velocity
is +11.9 m/s. and is zero at 4.59 s.
➢ At t = 4.59 s, the position graph x(t) shows an extremum (a
minimum in this case), just as expected from calculus, since
To find the average velocity, we insert t = 0 and t = 10 s into the equation for the
position vector as a function of time, we obtain x(t = 0) = 17.2 m and x(t = 10 s) = 26.2
m. Therefore,

We then obtain for the average velocity over this time interval:

The slope of the green dashed line in Figure 2.7 is the average velocity over this time
interval.
Example
The position of a moving object between 0s and 10s is given by:
𝑥 𝑡 = −5 + 45 t − (12.0)𝑡 2 +𝑡 3
a) What is the instantaneous velocity at t=0s, t=4s and t=10s.
b) Find the maximum and minimum displacements of this object.
𝑑𝑥
𝑣(𝑡)
Ԧ = = 45 − 24𝑡 + 3𝑡 2
𝑑𝑡

𝑣(0)
Ԧ = 45 − 24(0) + 3(0)2 = 45𝑚/𝑠

𝑣Ԧ 4 = 45 − 24 4 + 3 4 2 = −3𝑚/𝑠
𝑑𝑥
𝑣Ԧ 10 = = 45 − 24𝑡 + 3𝑡 2 = 105𝑚/𝑠
𝑑𝑡
 𝒗 𝟒 = −𝟑𝒎/𝒔

45 − 24𝑡 + 3𝑡 2 = 0 𝒗(𝟎) = 𝟒𝟓𝒎/𝒔 𝒗 𝟏𝟎 = 𝟏𝟎𝟓𝒎/𝒔

𝒗 𝟑 = 𝟎𝒎/𝒔 𝒗 𝟓 = 𝟎𝒎/𝒔

15 − 8𝑡 + 𝑡 2 = 0

𝑡 = 3, 𝑡 = 5
+ + + + + + + + + + + 0- - - - - - -0 + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

Maximum Minimum

Maximum at t=3s 𝑥 3 = −5 + 45 (3) − (12.0)(3)2 + 3 3 = 49𝑚

Minimum at t=5s 𝑥 5 = −5 + 45 (5) − (12.0)(5)2 + 5 3 = 45𝑚

Speed
Speed is the absolute value of the velocity vector. For a moving
object, speed is always positive:

Speed limits are always posted as positive numbers, and the radar
monitors that measure the speed of passing cars also always display
positive numbers.
The average speed when a distance ℓ is traveled during a time
interval ∆t is
SOLUTION
We start by defining our coordinate system, as shown in Figure 2.9. The positive x-axis
points toward the bottom of the page.
(a) First leg of the swim: The swimmer starts at x1 = 0 and swims to x2 = 50 m. It takes her
∆t = 38.2 s to accomplish this leg. Her average velocity for leg 1 then, according to our
definition, is
(b) Second leg of the swim: We use the same coordinate system for leg 2 as for leg 1.
This choice means that the swimmer starts at x1 = 50 m and finishes at x2 = 0, and it
takes ∆t = 42.5 s to complete this leg. Her average velocity for this leg is

Note the negative sign for the average velocity for this leg. The average speed is again
the absolute magnitude of the average velocity, or 𝑣Ԧ𝑥2 = −1.18 m/s = 1.18 m/s.
(c) First, because the swimmer started at x1 = 0 and finished at x2 = 0, the difference is 0.
Thus, the net displacement is 0, and consequently the average velocity is also 0.
The average speed, according to our definition, is the total distance divided by the
total time. The total distance is 100 m and the total time is 38.2 s plus 42.5 s, or 80.7
s. Thus,

We can also use the time-weighted sum of the average speeds, leading to the same
result. Note that the average speed for the entire lap is between that for leg 1 and
that for leg 2. It is not exactly halfway between these two values, but is closer to the
lower value because the swimmer spent more time completing leg 2.
2.15 Which one of the following statements is true at t = 2.5 s?
a) The x-component of the velocity of the object is zero.
b) The x-component of the acceleration of the object is zero.
c) The x-component of the velocity of the object is positive.
d) The x-component of the velocity of the object is negative
The position of an object moving along the x-axis is given by
x = 5.0 – (4.0)t + (2.0)t 2
Which statement about this object is correct?

A. For t > 0, the object is never at rest.

B. The object is at rest at t = 0.5 s.
C. The object is at rest at t = 1.0 s.
D. The object is at rest at t = 2.0 s.
E. More than one of B, C, and D is correct.
2.31 Running on a 50-m by 40-m rectangular track, you complete one lap in 100 s.
What is your average velocity for the lap?
𝒙𝒇 − 𝒙𝒊 𝟎 − 𝟎
ഥ=
𝒗 = = 𝟎 𝒎Τ𝒔
𝒕 𝟏𝟎𝟎
2.32 An electron moves in the positive x-direction a distance of 2.42 m in 2.91 × 10–8
s, bounces off a moving proton, and then moves in the opposite direction a distance
of 1.69 m in 3.43 × 10–8 s.
a) What is the average velocity of the electron over the entire time interval?
b) What is the average speed of the electron over the entire time interval?
𝑥Ԧ1 = 2.42𝑚 𝑥Ԧ2 = −1.69𝑚 𝒙𝟏
𝑡1 = 2.91 × 10−8 𝑠 𝑡2 = 3.43 × 10−8 𝑠
𝑥Ԧ1 + 𝑥Ԧ2 2.42 − 1.69 𝒙𝟐
𝑣ҧ = = −8 −8
= 11514195 𝑚/𝑠
𝑡1 + 𝑡2 2.91 × 10 + 3.43 × 10
𝑥Ԧ2 − 𝑥Ԧ1 −1.69 − 2.42
𝑠= = −8 −8
= 64826498 𝑚/𝑠
𝑡1 + 𝑡2 2.91 × 10 + 3.43 × 10
2.33 The graph describes the position of a particle in
one dimension as a function of time.
a) In which time interval does the particle have its
maximum speed? What is that speed?
b) What is the average velocity in the time interval
between -5 s and +5 s?
c) What is the average speed in the time interval
between -5 s and +5 s?
d) What is the ratio of the velocity in the interval
between 2 s and 3 s to the velocity in the interval
between 3 s and 4 s?
e) At what time(s) is the particle’s velocity zero?
a) In which time interval does the particle have
its maximum speed? What is that speed?
The largest speed is given by the steepest slope between -1s and 1s
𝑥 𝑡1 = 𝑥 −1 = 4𝑚 𝑥 𝑡2 = 𝑥 1 = −4𝑚
𝑥Ԧ2 − 𝑥Ԧ1 −4 − 4
𝑠= = = 4𝑚/𝑠
𝑡1 + 𝑡2 1 − (−1)
b) What is the average velocity in the time interval between
-5 s and +5 s?
𝑥 𝑡1 = 𝑥 −5 = 1𝑚 𝑥 𝑡2 = 𝑥 5 = −1𝑚
The average velocity is given by
𝑥 𝑡1 − 𝑥 𝑡2 −1 − 1
𝑣ҧ = = = −0.20𝑚/𝑠
𝑡1 + 𝑡2 5 − (−5)
c) What is the average speed in the time interval between -5 s and +5 s?
To find the total distance, the object started from 1m to 4m then
from 4m to -4m then from -4 to -1
𝑑 = 4−1 + −4−4 + −1 − (−4)
𝑑 = 3 + 8 + 3 = 14𝑚
𝑑 14
𝑠= = = 1.4𝑚/𝑠
𝑡1 + 𝑡2 5 − (−5)
d) What is the ratio of the velocity in the interval between
2s and 3s to the velocity in the interval between 3s and 4s?
𝑥 𝑡2𝑠 = 𝑥 2 = −4𝑚 𝑥 𝑡3𝑠 = 𝑥 2 = −2𝑚 𝑥 𝑡4𝑠 = 𝑥 3 = −1𝑚
𝑥 𝑡3𝑠 − 𝑥 𝑡2𝑠 −2 − (−4)
𝑣2→3 3 − 2 1 2
𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜 = = = = = 2: 1
𝑣3→4 𝑥 𝑡4𝑠 − 𝑥 𝑡3𝑠 −1 − (−2) 1
4−3 1
e) At what time(s) is the particle’s velocity zero?
The velocity is zero in the following time intervals:
1s to 2s
-5s to -4s
4s to 5s
2.34 The position of a particle moving along the x-axis is given by x = (11 + 14t - 2.0t2),
where t is in seconds and x is in meters. What is the average velocity during the time
interval from t = 1.0 s to t = 4.0 s?
𝑥 1 = 11 + 14 1 − 2.0 1 2 = 11 + 14 − 2 = 23m

𝑥 4 = 11 + 14 4 − 2.0 4 2 = 11 + 56 − 32 = 35m
𝑥 𝑡2 − 𝑥 𝑡1 35 − 23
𝑣ҧ = = = 4𝑚/𝑠
𝑡2 − 𝑡1 4−1
•2.35 The position of a particle moving along the x-axis is given by x = 3.0t2 - 2.0t3 ,
where x is in meters and t is in seconds. What is the position of the particle when it
achieves its maximum speed in the positive x-direction?
𝑑𝑥2
𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑 𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑐ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 2 = 0
𝑑𝑡
𝑑𝑥
= 6𝑡 − 6 𝑡 2
𝑑𝑡

𝑑𝑥2 𝑑 𝑑𝑥
2
= = 6 − 12𝑡 = 0 → 𝑡 = 0.5𝑠
𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡
𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑒 𝑡 = 0.5𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑢𝑙𝑎
𝑥 0.5 = 3.0(0.5)2 − 2(0.5)3 = 0.5𝑚
2.36 The rate of continental drift is on the order of 10.0 mm/yr. Approximately how
long did it take North America and Europe to reach their current separation of about
3000 mi?

𝑑 = 3000𝑚𝑖 = 3000 × 1609 = 4827000𝑚

𝑣 = 10 × 10−3 /𝑦𝑟 = 0.01𝑚/yr

𝑑 4827000
𝑡= = = 48270000 𝑦𝑟
𝑣 0.01
•2.38 The trajectory of an object is given by the equation
𝑥(𝑡) = (4.35 𝑚) + (25.9 𝑚/𝑠)𝑡 – (11.79 𝑚/𝑠 2 )𝑡 2
a) For which time t is the displacement x(t) at its maximum?
b) What is this maximum value?
𝑑𝑥
𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑐ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 =0
𝑑𝑡
𝑑𝑥
= 25.9 − 11.79 2𝑡 = 25.9 − 23.58𝑡 = 0
𝑑𝑡
25.9
𝑡= = 1.0984𝑠
23.58
𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑒 𝑡 = 1.0984𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑢𝑙𝑎
𝑥 1.0984𝑠 = 4.35 + 25.9 1.0984 − 11.97(1.0984)2 = 18.4𝑚