How do we compute average velocity?
To compute average velocity, we need to consider two main factors: displacement and time
To compute average velocity, we need to consider two main factors: displacement and time.
Average velocity is defined as the ratio of the total displacement to the total time elapsed. Mathematically, we can express it as:
Average velocity = Total displacement / Total time
To calculate the total displacement, we subtract the initial position from the final position. If an object moves in a straight line without changing direction, we can simply subtract the initial position from the final position.
For example, let’s say an object starts at position 5 meters and ends at position 15 meters. The total displacement would be:
Total displacement = Final position – Initial position
Total displacement = 15 m – 5 m
Total displacement = 10 meters
Next, we calculate the total time elapsed. This can be obtained by subtracting the initial time from the final time.
For instance, if the object starts at time t1 and ends at time t2, the total time would be:
Total time = t2 – t1
Now that we have the total displacement and total time, we can calculate the average velocity.
Average velocity = Total displacement / Total time
Let’s say the total displacement is 10 meters and the total time is 2 seconds:
Average velocity = 10 m / 2 s
Average velocity = 5 meters per second
Therefore, the average velocity of the object is 5 meters per second.
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