High School Physics : Introductory Principles

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for High School Physics

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Example Questions

Example Question #1 : Understanding Scalar And Vector Quantities

Walter is washing windows on a large building. He starts by washing the window on the 4th floor. He then moves down to the 3rd floor, then up to the 6th floor, then down to the 5th floor, then down to the 2nd floor, and finally he washes the 1st floor window. What is his total displacement?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Displacement is a vector relating the starting position to the ending position. Displacement does not take into account the route to arrive at the endpoint, and has both magnitude and direction.

In spite of taking a very complicated route to get there, Walter starts at the 4th floor and ends at the 1st floor.

Sine the result is negative, the displacement is 3 floors downward.

Example Question #8 : Understanding Scalar And Vector Quantities

Ariel walks  to the east,  to the west, and then  to the east again. What is her total displacement?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Displacement is a vector quantity, with both magnitude and direction. Remember, displacement does not take into account the route traveled, only the difference between starting position and ending position.

All movement in this question occurs along the x-axis (east and west. We use positive for east and negative for west, since direction is important to measure displacement.

This means that her total displacement was .

Example Question #31 : High School Physics

Which of these is a vector quantity?

Possible Answers:

Time

Acceleration

Speed

Distance

Temperature

Correct answer:

Acceleration

Explanation:

Scalar quantities give a magnitude, while vector quantities give a magnitude and a direction. The answer will be a measurement that must act in a given direction.

Distance is a measure of length, regardless of the direction. Displacement is the vector equivalent of distance.

Speed is a measure of rate, regardless of direction. Velocity is the vector equivalent of speed.

Temperature and time do not act in any direction and are purely scalar.

Acceleration must act in a given direction, and is a vector. An acceleration is described by both a magnitude and a direction of action.

Example Question #1 : Understanding Scalar And Vector Quantities

Which of these is a scalar quantity?

Possible Answers:

Velocity

Displacement

Momentum

Mass

Force

Correct answer:

Mass

Explanation:

Scalar quantities give a magnitude, while vector quantities give a magnitude and a direction. The answer will be a measurement that does not change, regardless of the direction of action.

Displacement is a measure of length in a given direction; distance is the scalar version of displacement.

Velocity is a measure of rate in a given direction; speed is the scalar version of velocity.

Force is a derivative of acceleration, and can only act in a given direction. There is no scalar equivalent of force. Similarly, momentum is a derivative of velocity and has no scalar equivalent.

Mass is a measure solely of magnitude, and requires no direction of action. Mass is a scalar quantity.

Example Question #11 : Understanding Scalar And Vector Quantities

Which of the following is a vector?

Possible Answers:

Surface area

Acceleration

Distance

Temperature

Thermal energy

Correct answer:

Acceleration

Explanation:

Remember, vectors need both magnitude and direction. Acceleration is the only answer choice that requires both magnitude and direction.

Example Question #12 : Understanding Scalar And Vector Quantities

A dog starts next to his owner, runs  to chase a ball, and then runs back  to the person who threw it. If this happens eight times to completion, what is the dog's displacement?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Displacement is a vector quantity that describes final positive relative to the starting point. It only measures the change in distance from where you start to where you end up.

Since the dog runs away, and then runs back to his original starting point, he is going a total displacement of zero meters for every loop. Since he makes eight full circuits, he will start and end in exactly the same place, hence,  displacement.

Distance is the scalar equivalent for displacement; the dog's distance traveled with be .

Example Question #13 : Understanding Scalar And Vector Quantities

A dog runs  to chase a ball and then runs back  to the person who threw it. If this happens eight times to completion, what is the dog's distance travelled?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Unlike displacement, which only measures the change between starting point and ending point, distance measures the entire trip travelled. Displacement is a vector, while distance is a scalar; thus, displacement is independent of path, while distance is dependent on path.

Each circuit the dog travels a total of , and he makes this trip eight times.

He will travel a total distance of .

The total displacement would be zero because the dog's ending position does not change, relative to his starting position.

Example Question #11 : Understanding Scalar And Vector Quantities

Which of the following is not a vector quantity?

Possible Answers:

Force

Volume

Acceleration

Displacement

Velocity

Correct answer:

Volume

Explanation:

Vector quantities have both magnitude and direction, while scalar quantities have only magnitude.

Velocity, acceleration, force, and displacement are all vectors. They must have a magnitude, as well as a direction of action. A velocity can be to the north, and a displacement can be east. A good way to identify vectors is if they can be negative. A negative vector indicates "downward" or "to the left," while a negative scalar cannot exist.

Volume is not a vector; it cannot have a direction. An object cannot have a volume of to the left, not can it have a volume of .

Example Question #11 : Understanding Scalar And Vector Quantities

Which of the following is a vector quantity?

Possible Answers:

Resistance

Force

Charge

Voltage

Electric potential

Correct answer:

Force

Explanation:

A vector quantity is described by both its magnitude, and its direction of action. In contrast, a scalar quantity is described only by its magnitude.

Force is a vector because the direction of action is relevant to describing the force. An upward force is notably different from a downward force.

Voltage, resistance, charge, and electric potential are scalar quantities and are the same regardless of any direction of action. For example, turning a circuit sideways does not alter the values for any of these quantities.

Example Question #11 : Understanding Scalar And Vector Quantities

Which of these is used to describe both scalar and vector quantities?

Possible Answers:

Magnitude

Direction

Acceleration

Mass

Constants

Correct answer:

Magnitude

Explanation:

Vector quantities are defined by both a direction and a magnitude. Force, velocity, acceleration, and momentum are all vectors.

Scalar quantities are defined only by a magnitude. Mass, time, speed, and voltage are all scalars.

Vector and scalar quantities both require a magnitude.

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