Displacement/Distance and Speed/Velocity (3/3)
The speed in all cases is the same, 45.45miles per hour. But you end up in different places! Shouldn't the physics reflect that these are in fact very different trips?
This is where displacement and velocity are important. Draw a map like the one at the top right of the board. We'll call one direction positive, (towards Hartford) and one direction negative (towards Niantic.) Thus the displacement for going to Hartford is 50 miles and the velocity is still 45.45 miles per hour. But to go from Hartford to Niantic is now a displacement of -50 miles and a velocity of -45.45miles per hour.
The most interesting one is the round trip. Your displacement is now zero! You ended where you started. This makes your velocity zero.
Displacement/Distance and Speed/Velocity (3/3)
The speed in all cases is the same, 45.45miles per hour. But you end up in different places! Shouldn't the physics reflect that these are in fact very different trips?
This is where displacement and velocity are important. Draw a map like the one at the top right of the board. We'll call one direction positive, (towards Hartford) and one direction negative (towards Niantic.) Thus the displacement for going to Hartford is 50 miles and the velocity is still 45.45 miles per hour. But to go from Hartford to Niantic is now a displacement of -50 miles and a velocity of -45.45miles per hour.
The most interesting one is the round trip. Your displacement is now zero! You ended where you started. This makes your velocity zero.