graphs galore! - Unit 3

In unit three, we studied kinematics, which is the study of motion. We mostly looked at graphs in this section, including distance vs. time graphs and velocity vs. time graphs. We found out that just by looking at a graph, one can determine the motion of the object.


I created two example situations of a distance vs. time graph, and graphed it in logger pro to help as a visual aid.
Without reading the two situations, can you determine who traveled more distance? Who had a greater velocity?

Situation A:
A car on the highway moves with constant positive velocity for 4 minutes. Then, it slows down to a lower positive velocity for one minute. It stops for half a minute, and returns to the initial position in 6.5 minutes.

Situation B:
A truck on the highway was 2 kilometers ahead of the car. It moves with constant positive velocity for 3 minutes, before stopping. After 1 minute of standing idle, it starts moving with a constant positive velocity for 6 minutes.

Graph A

Graph B

By manipulating the starting position, velocity, ending point, etc., it changes how a DT graph looks. Because the rate of distance traveled per time changes in both graphs, they do not have a constant velocity.

(The car in graph A traveled farther, but had zero velocity, so the truck in graph B had a greater velocity.)