Goals: The list at the end of this entry come from the AP standards. We’ll be focusing on the bold ones in this unit.
Big Dates: Test - Thursday. Oct. 28
Lab – Projectile Motion, due Wed. 10/19
Homework:
Quest problems due Monday, 10/17 at 10:00 pm, and
Tuesday, 10/25 at 10:00 pm
Worksheet labs for 10 pts each on Thursday, 10/6, and Wednesday, 10/19
1. Motion in One Dimension
a. Students should understand the general relationships among position, velocity and acceleration for the motion of a particle along a straight line, so that:
(1) Given a graph of one of the kinematic quantities, position, velocity, or acceleration as a function of time, they can recognize in what time intervals the other two are positive, negative or zero, and can identify or sketch a graph of each as a function of time.
(2) Given an expression for one of the kinematic quantities, position, velocity, or acceleration, as a function of time, they can determine the other two as a function of time, and find when these quantities are zero or achieve their maximum and minimum values.
b. Students should understand the special case of motion with constant acceleration so that they can:
(1) Write down expressions for velocity and position as functions of time, and identify or sketch graphs of these quantities.
(2) Use the equations to solve problems using one-dimensional motion with constant acceleration.
c. Students should know how to deal with situations in which acceleration is a specified function of velocity and time so they can write an appropriate differential equation and solve it, incorporating correctly a given initial value of v. (We'll do this one in our Forces Unit.)
2. Motion in Two Dimensions
a. Students should know how to deal with displacement and velocity vectors so they can:
(1) Relate velocity, displacement, and time for motion with constant velocity.
(2) Calculate the component of a vector along a specified axis, or resolve a vector into components along two specified mutually perpendicular axes.
(3) Add vectors in order to find the net displacement of a particle that undergoes successive straight-line displacements.
(4) Subtract displacement vectors in order to find the location of one particle relative to another, or calculate the average velocity of a particle.
(5) Add or subtract velocity vectors in order to calculate the velocity change or average acceleration of a particle, or the velocity of one particle relative to another.
b. Students should understand the general motion of a particle in two dimensions so that, given functions x(t) and y(t) which describe this motion, they can determine the components, magnitude, and direction of the particle’s velocity and acceleration as functions of time.
c. Students should understand the motion of projectiles in a uniform gravitational field so they can:
(1) Write down expressions for the horizontal and vertical components of velocity and position as functions of time, and sketch or identify graphs of these components.
(2) Use these expressions in analyzing the motion of a projectile that is projected above level ground with a specified initial velocity.
d. Students should understand the uniform circular motion of a particle so they can:
(1) Relate the radius of the circle and the speed or rate of revolution of the particle to the magnitude of the centripetal acceleration.
(2) Describe the direction of the particle’s velocity and acceleration at any instant during the motion.
(3) Determine the components of the velocity and acceleration vectors at any instant, and sketch or identify graphs of these quantities.
