Amjad Syedibrahim

Period: 3

10-2-15

Physics Chapter 3 Notes

Section 3.1: Using Vectors

A vector quantity contains both magnitude and direction.

Two vectors are considered equal if they have the same magnitude and direction.
The net displacement describes the net result of the first displacement, and then
the second displacement.
The sum of two vectors gives you the resultant vector.
The addition of vectors does not have an order, it is commutative.
When finding the sum of two vectors, place the tail of the vector being added, to
the tip of the first vector. Then draw a vector starting from the tail of the first
vector to the tip of the second vector. This gives you the resultant or V 1 + V2.
There are two methods to add vectors.
Method 1: The tip-to-tail rule ^^^(Listed above)
Method 2: Place both vectors at a corner where the tails begin and find the length
of the diagonal formed by the parallelogram that the two vectors make.
When multiplying a vector by a positive scalar quantity, the result is another vector
with a different magnitude but pointing in the same direction.
In the multiplication of a vector by a scalar quantity, the c value represent how
much the vector is stretched or compressed. If c=0, the length of the vector will
be 0 units and the direction will be undefined. This is known as a zero vector. The
direction is undefined because you cannot measure the distance of something with
zero length.
By multiplying a vector by -1, the direction gets reversed and the length is same.
To subtract V2 from V1 , change the direction of V2 to its opposite and place the tail
of that vector onto the tip of vector V1 and draw an arrow from the tail of V1 to the
tip of - V2 (the opposite). This will give you V1 -V2.

Section 3.2: Using Vectors on Motion Diagrams

An objects displacement is a vector.

The velocity vector is the displacement vector multiplied by the scalar 1/t.
The velocity vector points in the direction of the displacement.
An acceleration is present whenever there is a change in velocity.
Since velocity is a vector, it can change in a total of two possible ways. 1. The
magnitude can change, indicating a change in speed. 2. The direction of motion can
change.
The acceleration points in the same direction as vector v.

Amjad Syedibrahim
Period: 3
10-2-15
To find the acceleration vector between V i and Vf , draw the Vf first. Then draw
the -Vi at the tip of the Vf. Find the resultant. Take the resultant and place it onto
the original vector for Vi and Vf. This is the average acceleration at the midpoint
between Vi and Vf.

Section 3.3: Coordinate Systems and Vector Components

Once a vector has been plotted and the x and y axes have been fixed, two new
vectors can be defined parallel to the axes. These are called the x-component and
the y-component vectors and they are always perpendicular to each other.
The original vector is the sum of the two component vectors.
When the original vector has been broken down into its two components, it is said
to have been decomposed or resolved.
The orientation of the coordinate system is important to create the x and y
component vectors.
To determine the components of a vector, take the absolute value of the xcomponent. This represents the magnitude of the component vector. The sign of
the vector is positive if the x-component of the vector points in the positive xdirection and negative if the x-component of the vector points in the negative xdirection. The y-component is determined the same way.

Section 3.4: Motion on a Ramp

Limiting cases is when the angle is at one end of its range.

On a inclined plane, the free fall of the object is determined by adding its x and y

component vectors together.

The value of acceleration along a frictionless slope is given by a x=(g)*(sin )
When is a 90 angle, then the vector of the inclined plane will be considered the

hypotenuse of the triangle.

When solving a problem where you are given the hypotenuse and vertical height of
an inclined plane, first perform the appropriate trigonometric function to give you
the angle of . Using the angle of , you can then plug it into the equation ax=
(g)*(sin ) to give you the acceleration of an object sliding along the inclined plane.
Once you know this piece of information, you can easily plug it into one of the three
kinematics equations to find the variable you are solving for.

Section 3.5: Relative Motion

Velocity is not a concept that can be true or false.

Amjad Syedibrahim
Period: 3
10-2-15
Relative velocity is velocity that is described from a point of view relative to the

motion of the object. There can be multiple descriptions of the velocity of one
person and they will all still be valid.
You can add two relative velocities by cancelling subscripts.
When you are given a problem (vx)RC=(vx)RA+(vx)AC, adding (vx)AC is the same thing as
subtracting (vx)CA.

Section 3.6: Motion in Two Dimensions: Projectile Motion

Projectile motion is an extension to two dimensions of free-fall motion.

A projectile is an object that moves in two dimensions under the influence of

gravity and nothing else.

All real objects are influenced by air resistance, but the effect of it is really small

for dense objects moving at moderate speeds. For this reason, it will be ignored in
this chapter.
Any projectile will always follow the same type of path, which is a trajectory in the

form of a parabola, as long as air resistance is ignored.

The shape of the trajectory, a parabola, is the same for all objects because the

free-fall acceleration is also the same for all objects.

As a projectile is moving, the horizontal component of the velocity will not change.

Rather, the vertical component will have changes.

The horizontal and vertical components of the acceleration of an object in

projectile motion are: ax= 0 m/s2 and ay= -g = -9.80 m/s2.

The start of a projectiles motion is called a launch.
The angle of the initial velocity will be above the x-axis up until the vector for

the initial velocity.

The initial velocity vector can also be expressed in terms of x- can y-components.
The x- can y-components of the initial velocity vector will not always be positive.
If a projectile is thrown below the horizontal (x-axis), then there will be negative

values for and the y-component of the initial velocity vector. However, the xcomponent of the initial velocity vector will still be the same and the speed of the
initial velocity will always be a positive value.
An object will finish its motion moving downward at the same speed it started

moving upward in.

Projectile motion is made up of two independent motions: uniform motion at a

constant velocity in the horizontal direction and free-fall motion in the vertical
direction.
There are four equations of motion for the parabolic trajectory of a projectile.

Amjad Syedibrahim
Period: 3

10-2-15

1. xf = xi + (vx)i t

2. yf = yi +(vy)i t -

1
2

g(t)2

3. (vx)f = (vx)i = constant

4. (vy)f = (vy)i g t
The vertical and horizontal components of an object in projectile motion are

independent of each other.

The initial vertical velocity has no impact over the horizontal motion of an object
and the initial horizontal velocity has no effect over the vertical motion either.

Section 3.7: Projectile Motion: Solving Problems

There are four kinematics equations used for projectile motion, two for the
vertical component and two for the horizontal component.
Horizontal: 1. xf = xi +(vx)i t 2. (vx)f = (vx)i = constant
Vertical: 1. yf = yi + (vy)i t -

1
2

g(t)2

2. (vy)f = (vy)i gt

t is the same for both the vertical and horizontal components of the motion.
The range of a projectile is the horizontal distance it has traveled.
If the launch angle is very small or very large, the range will be quite small.
If a ball is thrown with a launch angle of 75, it will go up-and-down quite a bit, but
it will not travel far horizontally. Similarly, if a ball gets thrown with a launch angle
of 15, the ball will not get enough airtime and thus will not be able to travel far.
Both of these cases have the same range, or horizontal distance traveled.
A launch angle of 45 will give you the maximum range when the object is landing at
the same elevation it was launched in.
The optimal launch angle for projectiles such as baseballs and golf balls is less than
45 because of the effects of air resistance.
Air resistance is critical for small objects traveling at high speeds.

Section 3.8: Motion in Two Dimensions: Circular Motion

Uniform circular motion is when an object travels at a constant speed, but

continuously changes direction.
The period of motion is the time interval it takes an object to go around a circle
one time, completing one revolution. A period is represented by the symbol T.
Circular motion is specified by its frequency, the number of revolutions per second.
The symbol f is used to represent this.
If an object has a period of one-half second, that means it completes 2 revolutions
each second.

Amjad Syedibrahim
Period: 3
10-2-15
If an object makes 10 revolutions in 1 second, then its period is one-tenth of a
second.

Frequency is the inverse of the period. f= T

Revolutions are not units. The SI unit of frequency is inverse seconds, or s -1.
The frequency may also be measured in revolutions per minute (rpm). These other
units usually need to be calculated into s-1 before working with them.
The equation relating the period, the radius and the speed can be written as:

v=

2 R
T

where v represents the speed, R is the radius, and T is the period.

To relate the frequency to the speed, we can write the equation: v=2fR where v
represents the speed, R is the radius, and f is the frequency.
An object in uniform circular motion is accelerating even though it is moving at a
constant speed because its velocity changes as the direction of motion changes.
The acceleration vector points towards the center of the circle.
The velocity vector point in the direction of motion of the object and shows its
speed.
The velocity vector will always be tangent to the circle and perpendicular to the
acceleration vector at all points.
An acceleration that always points directly to the center of the circle is called a
centripetal acceleration.
The relationship between displacement, velocity and the radius can be shown by the
equation:

v d
=
v
r . Where v is the change in velocity, v is the speed, r is the

radius, and d is the displacement.

Displacement is the speed times the interval of time and can be represented by the
equation: d = vt. This value can be substituted for d in the previous equation
leaving you with:

v v t
=
. The variables in this equation can be rearranged to:
v
r

v vv
=
t
r . The equation

v
t = acceleration. We can replace the left side of

the equation with an a for acceleration giving us: a=

vv
r .

Amjad Syedibrahim
Period: 3

10-2-15

If we combine the quantity for acceleration (

the centripetal acceleration as

a =(

vv
,
r

vv
r ) with a direction, we can write
toward center of the circle). In this

case, our direction is at the center of the circle.

Overall Chapter 3 Summary

1. Projectile motion is an object that moves through the air under the influence and
effect of just gravity. It consists of both vertical and horizontal motion with
vertical being the acceleration of gravity and the horizontal being a constant
velocity. There are four kinematics equations related to projectile motion. The path
of motion of a projectile is a parabola.
2. A vector can be decomposed or resolved into x and y-components. Using these
components, you can find the magnitude and direction of the vector. The direction
of the vector will determine the sign of its components. The angle of a vector can
be calculated using trigonometric ratios given other lengths of the triangle.
3. The acceleration vector is defined as the final velocity minus initial velocity over

the final time minus the initial time. Written as: a= t

. The acceleration vector

will point in the direction of the vector v.

4. When an object is moving in a circle at a constant speed the period is the time it
takes for one rotation, defined by the variable T. The frequency is the number of
revolutions it makes in one second, given by f, which is equal to f=1/T. The velocity
vector is tangent to the circular path. The acceleration vector points towards the
center of the circle and has a magnitude defined by the formula a=

vv
r .

Amjad Syedibrahim
Period: 3
10-2-15
5. Relative motion is the concept that velocity can be perceived from different point
of views and that there is no wrong calculation for a velocity based on that.
Operations can be performed with relative velocities to calculate the velocity in
another persons point of view.
6. When an object is sliding down an inclined plane, its acceleration will be parallel to
the angle of that surface. Given by the formula: ax = gsin . The direction in which
the ramp is tilted is important to determine the correct sign that will be used from
the equation. The result ax gives the magnitude of the acceleration. If = 0, then ax
will also equal 0. This is because when the plane is leveled with the ground, the
force of gravity cannot bring it down any further and thus the object remains at
rest giving us an acceleration of zero.