Journal Entry 5 Accelerated Motion, Pt I

Acceleration is the change of velocity over time. Represented as: 𝑎= ∆𝑣 ∆𝑡 An object only accelerates when it experiences an unbalanced force (a non-zero net force). In other words, a non-zero net force causes objects to accelerate. *Our studies will only involve accelerations values that remain constant over time.

The position vs time graph for an object experiencing a constant acceleration will be curved. If an object is increasing speed, the curve will become steeper as a greater change in position occurs for each interval of time. In both scenarios shown, the curve becomes steeper over time. One object is speeding up while moving in the positive direction. The other is speeding up while moving in the negative direction.

The slope of a velocity vs time graph represents the acceleration of the object. The sign of acceleration tells the direction of the net force acting on an object. Because we will only deal with acceleration values that remain constant, our velocity vs time graphs for accelerating objects will always be diagonal lines.

The relationship between velocity and time for an accelerating object is: vf = vi + at