Just Physics

← Unit 1 Handouts

Topic 1.1: Practice Sheet — Distance, Displacement, Vectors, and Scalars

Name: _______________________________ Date: _______________ Period: ______

Directions: Show your work for every problem — a correct answer with no work shown earns partial credit at best. Circle or box your final answer.

Warm-Up Level (straightforward, one-step)

  1. A jogger runs 12 m east, then continues 5 m further east. Find the total distance traveled and the displacement.
  2. Classify each as a vector or a scalar: mass, velocity, time, force.

Standard Level (multi-step, matches typical AP Classroom depth)

  1. A cyclist rides 400 m east to a store, then rides 250 m back west before stopping. Find the total distance traveled and the displacement (magnitude and direction).
  2. An elevator goes up 3 floors, then up 2 more, then down 4. Find the net floor change, and state whether "net floor change" here is being used as a vector or scalar quantity.
  3. A hiker walks 3 km north, then 2 km east, then 3 km south, ending the hike. Find the total distance traveled and the displacement (magnitude and direction).

AP-Level (multi-part: calculate + justify/represent/predict-a-change)

  1. A classmate claims: "Whenever an object returns exactly to its starting point, both its distance traveled and its displacement are zero." Create your own numerical example to test this claim, calculate both quantities, and explain whether the claim is true or false.
  2. A small robot moves along a straight track: 5 m east, then 3 m further east, then 2 m west. a) Find the robot's total distance traveled and total displacement. b) Explain whether the robot's direction of motion changed at any point, and how you know from the numbers given.

Progress Check Style (evaluate the method — AP Classroom format)

  1. A cyclist rides a winding trail through a park and returns to the exact spot where they started. Which of the following methods would give the most accurate measurement of the cyclist's displacement for the entire ride? (A) Sum the length of every segment of the trail as recorded by a bike computer's odometer. (B) Record GPS coordinates at the start and end of the ride and calculate the straight-line distance between them. (C) Multiply the average speed by the total time of the ride. (D) Count the number of turns the cyclist made and estimate distance from that.

Keep this sheet — it's part of your semester study materials, same as your Concept Sheets.