Physics I: 1-5 Flashcards
base units
standard units around which the system itself is designed
derived units
created by associating base units with each other
vectors
numbers that have magnitude and direction
ex: displacement, velocity, acceleration, force
vector
examples
displacement, velocity, acceleration, force
scalars
numbers that have magnitude only
no direction
ex: distance, speed, energy, pressure, mass
scalar
examples
distance, speed, energy, pressure, mass
common notation for vector quantities
arrow or boldface
common notation for scalar quantities
italic
resultant
sum or difference of 2 or more vectors
tip to tail method of vector addition

vector addition may be accomplished two ways:
- tip to tail method
- breaking a vector into its components and using the Pythagorean theorem
COMMUTATIVE
trig
X =

X = V cos theta
trig
Y =

Y = V sin theta
using Pythagorean theorem for vector addition

vector subtraction may be accomplished by
changing the direction of the subtracted vector and then following the procedures for vector addition
A - B = A + (-B)
NOT COMMUTATIVE
finding the resultant (R) of V1 + V2 + V3
- resolve the vectors to be added into their x and y components
- add the x components to get the Rx; add the y components to get Ry
- find the magnitude of the resultant by using the Pythagorean theorem
- find the direction (theta) of the resultant using tan-1

multiplying vectors by scalars
if a vector A is multiplied by the scalar value n, a new vector B is creased such that:
B = nA
mutiplying a vector by a scalar changes the _____ and may reverse the _____
magnitude
direction
multiply vectors by other vectors to get a scalar quantity
dot product
A • B = |A| |B| cos theta
dot product
multiplying 2 vectors to get a scalar quantity
A • B = |A| |B| cos theta
multiply vectors by other vectors to get a vector quantity
cross product
A x B = |A| |B| sin theta
use right hand rule
NOT commutative - order matters
cross product
multiplying 2 vectors to get a vector quantity
A x B = |A| |B| sin theta
steps to apply right hand rule
C = A x B
- point thumb in direction of vector A
- extend fingers in direction of vector B
- the direction your palm points is the direction of the resultant C
when calculating the sum of vectors A and B (A+B), we put the tail of B at the tip of A. what would the effect of reversing this order (B+A)?
vector addtn is a commutative function
the resultant of A+B is the same as B+A









































































































