1.  “Acceleration”

2.  Key Questions How do you calculate acceleration? What kind of motion does acceleration refer to? What graphs can be used to analyze the motion of an accelerating object?

3. acceleration- Key Terms

4. Paragraph 1 acceleration: rate at which velocity changes; Note: velocity described by its speed, direction; refers to: 1. increasing speed; 2. decreasing speed; 3. changing direction. 1.511 × 511 - en.wikipedia.org511 × 511 - en.wikipedia.org

5. Paragraph 2 change in object’s speed = acceleration; positive or negative change; negative change = deceleration. 1.511 × 511 - en.wikipedia.org511 × 511 - en.wikipedia.org

6. Paragraph 3 changing direction = also accelerating, even w/ constant speed; examples: car going around a curve; car changing lanes. 1.511 × 511 - en.wikipedia.org511 × 511 - en.wikipedia.org

7. Paragraph 4 Note: many objects change direction at constant speed; simplest type is circular motion like orbital motion like the moon around the Earth. 1.511 × 511 - en.wikipedia.org511 × 511 - en.wikipedia.org

8. Paragraph 5 Note: to determine acceleration, calculate change in velocity per unit of time; Acceleration = Final velocity – Initial velocity / Time; Note: if velocity measured in meters/second and time measured in seconds then unit of acceleration is meters per second second. 1.511 × 511 - en.wikipedia.org511 × 511 - en.wikipedia.org

9. Paragraph 6 Note: speed vs time graph and distance vs time graph used for analysis of acceleration; speed vs time graph: slanted straight line means constant acceleration; find acceleration through slope of the line; if objects accelerates at different amounts then graph is not a straight line; distance vs time graph: line is sloped. 1.511 × 511 - en.wikipedia.org511 × 511 - en.wikipedia.org