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Physics
Kinematics Overview

Kinematics deals with describing motions - after all, if you are going to study something (like motion) you had better be able to describe it completely, accurately, and consistently.

In physics, you can describe an object's motion if you can tell where the object is going to be, how fast it will be going, and its direction of motion at any given time. For more specific expectations, a list of new terms and objectives is available.

Kinematics table of contents:

• Kinematics Concepts
  • Ch 2 PowerPoint notes framework (download the file)
• What is one-dimensional motion?
• Measuring distances
• Speed
  • Average speed
  • Speeds are relative
    • Relative velocity (AP)
  • Instantaneous Speed
  • Constant Speed
  • Practice quiz on speed
• Velocity
  • Practice quiz on velocity
• Acceleration
  • What's the difference between velocity and acceleration?
  • Practice quiz on acceleration
  • Constant acceleration
    • An algebraic approach
    • Deriving (AP)
    • Kinematics Equation & Concept Summary (AP)
• Applications
  • Free Fall - What is it?
    • Velocity and Acceleration of an object dropped from rest
    • Distance fallen for an object dropped from rest
    • What about a non-zero initial speed?
    • What if there is an initial upward velocity?
  • Calculating Velocity, Acceleration, and Distance moved
    • Solving Free Fall problems
      • Falling from rest
      • Spreadsheet Solutions for Kinematics Problems
        • Example 1 - A simple free-fall problem
        • Example 2 - Free fall with an initial upward velocity
    • Car Stopping Distance Data
  • Practice quiz on free fall
• Kinematics Labs and Activities:
  • Measuring Average Speed
    • Measuring Average Speed of an "Event"
    • Measuring Average Speed of Walking
      • Data table for the lab
  • Rocket Racer by Peggy E. Schweiger
  • Kinematics graphs
    • Kinematics Graphs Using a Motion Detector
      • Worksheet 1 - Position vs. Time Graphs
      • Worksheet 2 - Velocity vs. Time Graphs
      • Worksheet 3 - "Challenge" Graphs
    • "Matching" Kinematics Graphs
    • Motion of a Motorized Cart - A simple, low-tech lab for practice constructing and analyzing kinematics graphs
  • Galileo's Experiment Revisited
  • Building an accelerometer
  • Measuring Reaction Time
• Free Fall Labs and Activities
  • Measuring "g" - Uses the Pasco^TM free-fall adapter to time the fall of a sphere
• Bouncing Ball "g" - uses the Pasco^TM motion sensor to measure "g" for a bouncing ball
• VideoPoint^TM Free Fall Analysis
• Interactive Physics^TM Free Fall Simulation (Free fall from rest)
• Interactive Physics^TM Free Fall Simulation (Initial upward velocity)
• Kinematics Demonstrations
  • Velocity vs. Acceleration
  • Dropping a sheet of paper with (and on) an book
  • Projectile cart
• Practice Quizzes
  • Average speed quiz
  • Velocity quiz
  • Acceleration quiz
  • Free Fall quiz
• Supplements:
  • Video: "Tracking Speed" - ESPN SportsFigures - very good, accept they say acceleration is the rate of change of speed (instead of velocity).
• Links:
  • CPSurf - Linear Motion - excellent set of annotated links by the publisher of the text
  • The Physics Department - Mechanics, Kinematics - part of Zona Land, very well done.
  • Position vs. Time - a neat applet that lets you construct a position vs. time for a motion you control.
  • What are Deltas? - a nice explanation of displacement and "change in" in general
  • Slopes and Areas of the Kinematics Graphs
  • XVA and XVA Library - applets that display position, velocity, and acceleration vs. time graphs for various motions. You will need a VRML plug-in to use the XVA Library.
  • Fundamental SI Units
  • Metric Prefixes

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[Chapter 2 Objectives]