Distance differs from displacement in that distance
Correct answer: B. is the total path length travelled, while displacement is the straight line change in position
- A. is a vector and displacement is a scalar
- B. is the total path length travelled, while displacement is the straight line change in position
- C. is always smaller than displacement
- D. is measured in different units
Explanation
Walking once round a circular track leaves the displacement at zero while the distance equals the circumference, so distance can exceed displacement but never be less than it. Distance is the scalar and displacement the vector, which is the reverse of the first option. Both are measured in metres.
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About Displacement and Velocity
Displacement is the directed change in position, while velocity is the rate of change of displacement and includes both magnitude and direction. The topic connects position-time and velocity-time graphs with average and instantaneous values, and distinguishes displacement from distance and velocity from speed.
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