Summary

• Kinematics problems in two and three dimensions are essentially geometry problems. To solve them you should be able to …
  • represent a kinematic event with a geometric diagram;
  • use geometry to determine unknown magnitudes (lengths) and directions (angles); and
  • identify the magnitudes and directions needed to determine quantities like distance, displacement, speed, velocity, and acceleration from their definitions.
• Review the kinematic definitions presented earlier in this chapter.
  • First the scalar quantities …
    • Distance is a scalar measure of the interval between two locations measured along the actual path connecting them.
    • Speed is the rate of change of distance with time.
  • And then the vector quantities …
    • Displacement is a vector measure of the interval between two locations measured along the shortest path connecting them.
    • Velocity is the rate of change of displacement with time.
    • Acceleration is the rate of change of velocity with time.