Reading Assignment: Chapter 6 of Tippens.

We begin our discussion of kinematics today. `Kinematics' is the study of motion irrespective of imposed forces. We will discuss 'Dynamics' later, which is the study of how forces produce motion. Newton's 3 Laws are the basis of our study of dynamics. We trace the study of kinematics back to Galileo in the earliest 17th century -- before Newton was born. We begin our study of kinematics today with a discussion of postion and displacement in one dimension. Postion and displacement are different but related quantities. Displacement is the change of position, it describes the motion of an object over an elapsed period of time. Position is the location of an object at an instant in time.
In one dimension we do not need vectors to describe direction, rather direction is specified completely with a sign (plus or minus). A VERY important thing for you to realize is that the sign of displacement is chosen by you, the problem solver. (Or perhaps is has been specified in the statement of the problem.) In any event, the sign of displacement is a matter of convention.
An image discussing what kinematics is and the relation between position and displacement can be viewed by clicking here.
The next subjects in kinematics are average velocity and average, or constant, acceleration which are described here. This is a pretty detailed image and requires careful study.

Link for the Day: ConcepTests
(Under `Subject Search' click Kinematics and then click `Search' at the bottom of the page)

Questions or comments should be addressed to Mike Ritzwoller at ritzwoller@phys-geophys.colorado.edu 

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