General Physics 1

Engr. Red Rose Blezel A. Monville

What is Physics ?

• Is a natural science; that is it deals with natural phenomena.

• Physics is also called Physical Science – it may seem redundant but it
is to emphasize that the goal is to discover the laws governing the
physical universe.
• Physics is the fundamental natural science because it examines the
principles that applies to all parts (astronomy, biology, chemistry, and
geology et. Al ) of the physical world.
Principle/Law and Concepts
• Physical principle or law is a rule that governs some behavior or
property of the physical Universe. Distinction between them is that
laws are principles that have withstood many experiments and
observations. Some principles, however, earn the title law and are
later found to have some limitations, but they do not get demoted
back to principle.

• Concepts – is an idea that makes it possible to describe the physical

world clearly.
For example : Acceleration is a concept, but Newton’s second law of
motion is a principle that explains how an object accelerates.
Unit

• The unit is a unique name we assign to measures of that quantity for

example, meter (m) for the quantity of length.

Base Quantities and Base Standards

• Base Standards must be both accessible and invariable.
Units
• SI Units, which stands for French phrase “Le Systeme Intenational d’Unites”
• Employs meter (m) as the unit of length, the kilogram (kg) as the unit of
mass, and the second (s) as the unit of time.

System
SI CGS BE
Length meter (m) centimeter (cm) foot (ft)
Mass kilogram (kg) gram (g) slug (sl)
Time second (s) second (s) second (s)
Standard Prefixes
a
Prefix Symbol Factor
12
tera T 10
9
giga G 10
6
mega M 10
3
kilo k 10
2
hecto h 10
1
deka da 10
−1
deci d 10
−2
centi c 10
−3
milli m 10
−6
micro μ 10
−9
nano n 10
−12
pico p 10
−15
femto f 10
Conversion of Units
Example 1.
The highest waterfall in the world is Angel Falls in Venezuela,
with a total drop of 979.0 m. Express this drop in feet.

Answer: 3212 feet.

Example 2.
Express the speed limit of 65 miles/hour in terms of meters/second.

Answer: 29 m/s
Remember: Only the quantities with the same units can be added or
subtracted.
TRIGONOMETRY
• Trigonometry is one of the branch of mathematics that we will use in
problem solving. Throughout the text, three trigonometric functions
sill be used: sine, cosine and tangent.
PYTHAGOREAN
SOH-CAH-TOA THEOREM
ℎ𝑜
sin 𝜃 =
ℎ ℎ2 = ℎ𝑜2 + ℎ𝑎2
ℎ𝑎
cos 𝜃 =
ℎ

ℎ𝑜
tan 𝜃 =
ℎ𝑎
Example 3.
On a sunny day, a tall building casts a shadow that is 67.2 m long. The
angle between the sun’s rays and the ground is θ=50.0°. Determine the
height of the building.

Answer: 80.0 m
Nature of Physical Quantities
• Scalar Quantities – is one that can be described by a single number
(including any units) giving its size or magnitude.
• Vector quantities – is one the deals with both magnitude and
direction.

Note: DIRECTION is an important characteristic of vectors, arrows are used to represent them; the
direction of the arrow gives the direction of the vector. The arrow below is called the displacement
vector because it shows how the car is displaced from its starting point. The length of the vector
arrow is proportional to the magnitude of the vector.
Give examples of vector and scalar
quantities.
Question
There are places where the temperature is + 20°C at one time of the
year and - 20°C at another time. Do the plus and minus sign that signify
temperatures imply that temperature is a vector quantity ?
Vector Addition and Subtraction
Example 4 .
A car moves along a straight line, with a displacement vector 𝑨 of 275 m, due
east. Then the car moves again in the same direction, with a displacement
vector 𝑩 of 125 m, due east. These two vectors add to give the total
displacement vector 𝑹.

𝑹=𝑨+𝑩
𝑹 = 275 m, due east + 125 m, due east =400 m, due east
Example 5
This figure applies to a car that first travels with a displacement vector 𝑨 of
275 m, due east, and then with a displacement vector 𝑩 of 125 m, due north.
The two vectors add to give a resultant displacement vector 𝑹.

𝑅 = 2752 + 1252
𝑅 = 302 𝑚
−1 𝐵 −1 125
Θ= 𝑡𝑎𝑛 = 𝑡𝑎𝑛 = 24.4°
𝐴 275
Finding the resultant using graphical
methods

1. Arrows are drawn tail to head

2. The lengths of the vector are drawn to
a scale using a ruler
3. Use of protractor for measurement of
direction.
Subtraction
The subtraction of one vector from another is carried out in a way that
depends on the following fact. When a vector is multiplied by -1.

Example 6
1. A woman climbs 1.2 m up a ladder, so that her displacement vector D is 1.2
m, upward along the ladder .

A displacement of vector – D is (-1)D, has the same magnitude but is opposite

in direction.
Example 7

In practice, vector subtraction is carried out exactly like vector addition. These vectors add
together to give a third vector 𝑪, according to 𝑪 = 𝑨 + 𝑩. Therefore, we can calculate vector
𝑨 as 𝑨 =𝑪 − 𝑩, which is an example of vector subtraction. However, we can also write this result
as 𝑨 =𝑪 + (−𝑩) and treat it as vector addition.
Vector Components
• The components 𝒙 and 𝒚, when added vectorially, convey exactly the
same meaning as does the original vector 𝒓 . 𝒙 and 𝒚 are not just any
two vectors that add together to give the original vector 𝒓 : they are
perpendicular vectors.
Example 8
A displacement vector r has a magnitude of r = 175 m and points at an angle of
50.0 ° relative to the x axis in the figure. Find the x and y components of this
vector.

Answer:
y = 134m x = 112 m
Example 9
A jogger runs 145 m in a direction 20.0° east of north (displacement vector 𝑨 ) and
then 105 m in a direction 35.0° south of east (displacement vector 𝑩 ). Using
components, determine the magnitude and direction of the resultant vector 𝑪 for
these two displacements.

Answer:
C = 155m 𝜃 = 29 °
References:
Physics - Cutnell & Johnson 11th Edition
Principles of Physics (International Student Version 10th Edition) –
Walker|Halliday|Resnick
University Physics 10th Edition – Young & Freedman
Physics for Scientists and Engineers Volume 1 – Debora Katz
That’s all, Thank You for listening !
God Bless !
Kinematics: Motion
along a straight line
Kinematics is One Dimension
Mechanics – branch of Physics that focuses on motion of the objects
and the forces that causes it.

Two parts of Mechanics:

Kinematics – deals with the concepts that are needed to describe
motion, without any reference to forces.

Dynamics – deals with the effect that forces have on motion.

Displacement (m)
The displacement is a vector that points from an object's initial position to its final position and
has a magnitude that equals the shortest distance between the two positions.
SI Unit of Displacement: meter (m)

Sign
(+) east
(-) west
Question
A honeybee leaves the hive and travels a total distance of 2 km before
returning to the hive. What is the magnitude of the displacement
vector of the bee?
Average Speed (m/s)
• The distance traveled divided by the time required to cover the
distance.

𝐷𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒
𝐴𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑔𝑒 𝑆𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑 =
𝐸𝑙𝑎𝑝𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑇𝑖𝑚𝑒
Example 1.
How far does a jogger run in 1.5 hours if his average speed is 2.22 m/s?

ANSWER:
d = 12000 m
Average Velocity (m/s)

Example 2.
From the date below, determine the average velocity for each run.

ANSWER:
Run 1 = + 339.5 m/s
Run 2 = - 342.7 m/s
Instantaneous Velocity (m/s)
Indicates how fast an objects moves and the direction of the motion at
each instant of time. The magnitude of instantaneous velocity is called
the instantaneous speed.
Acceleration ( 𝒎
Τ𝒔𝟐 )
Average Acceleration Instantaneous
Acceleration
Example 3.
𝑚
Suppose that a plane starts from rest 𝑉𝑖 = 0 when ti = 0s. The plane accelerates
𝑠 𝑘𝑚
down the runway and a t = 29 s attains velocity of 𝑉𝑓 = +260 , where the plus
ℎ
sign indicates that the velocity points to the right. Determine the average
acceleration of the plane.

ANSWER:
𝑘𝑚ൗ
𝑎 = +9.0 ℎ
𝑠
Example 4.
A drag racer crosses the finish line, and the driver deploys a parachute and applies
the brakes to slow down. The driver begins slowing down when ti = 9.0s and the
car’s velocity is 𝑉𝑖 = +28 m/s. When t = 12.0 s, the velocity has been reduced to
𝑚
𝑉𝑓 = +13 . What is the average acceleration of the dragster?
𝑠

ANSWER:
𝑚
𝑎Ԧ = −5.0 2
𝑠
Equations of Kinematics for Constant
Acceleration

Where:
𝑉𝑓 = 𝑉𝑜 + 𝑎𝑡 𝑉𝑓 = 𝑓𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦
𝑉𝑜 = 𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑎𝑙 𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦
𝑉𝑓 2 = 𝑉𝑜2 + 2𝑎𝑥
𝑎 = 𝑎𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡
1 2 𝑥 = 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡
𝑥 = 𝑉𝑜 𝑡 + 𝑎𝑡 𝑡 = 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑝𝑠𝑒𝑑
2
Example 5
A speedboat has a constant acceleration of +2.0𝑚/𝑠 2 . If the initial
velocity of the boat is +6.0𝑚/𝑠 find its displacement after 8.0 seconds.

ANSWER:
s = +110 m
Example 6.
A jet is taking off from the deck of an aircraft carrier. Starting from rest,
the jet is catapulted with a constant acceleration of +31 m/s2 along a
straight line and reaches a velocity of +62m/s. Find the displacement of
the jet.

ANSWER:
+62 m
The spacecraft shown is traveling with a velocity of +3250 m/s. Suddenly the
retrorockets are fired, and the spacecraft begins to slow down with an acceleration
whose magnitude is 10.0 m/s2. What is the velocity of the spacecraft when the
displacement of the craft is +215 km, relative to the point where the retrorockets
began firing?

ANSWER:
+2500 m/s
A motorcycle ride consists of two segments, as shown in . During segment 1, the
motorcycle starts from rest, has an acceleration of +2.6 m/s2, and has a
displacement of +120 m. Immediately after segment 1, the motorcycle enters
segment 2 and begins slowing down with an acceleration of −1.5 m/s2until its
velocity is +12 m/s. What is the displacement of the motorcycle during segment 2?

ANSWER:
+160 m
Free-Falling Bodies
The acceleration of a freely falling body is called the acceleration due to gravity,
and its magnitude (without any algebraic sign) is denoted by the symbol g. The
acceleration due to gravity is directed downward, toward the center of the
earth. Near the earth's surface, g is approximately
In the presence of air resistance, the acceleration of
the rock is greater than that of the paper. (b) In the
absence of air resistance, both the rock and the paper
have the same acceleration.
A stone is dropped from rest from the top of a tall building. After 3.00 s of
free-fall, what is the displacement y of the stone?

ANSWER:
−44.1 m
s
In the previous problem, what is the velocity v of the stone after 3.00 s of free-
fall ?

ANSWER:
−29.4 m/s
A football game customarily begins with a coin toss to determine who kicks off.
The referee tosses the coin up with an initial speed of 5.00 m/s. In the absence
of air resistance, how high does the coin go above its point of release? what is
the total time the coin is in the air before returning to its release point?

ANSWER:
1.28 m
1.02 s
A bicyclist maintains a constant velocity on the outgoing leg of a trip, zero
velocity while stopped, and another constant velocity on the way
back. Interactive Figure 2.18 shows the corresponding position–time graph.
Using the time and position intervals indicated in the drawing, obtain the
velocities for each segment of the trip.
ANSWER:
Segment 1 = +2 m/s
Segment 2 = 0 m/s
Segment 3 = −1 m/s
Kinematics in two dimensions
In the previous lessons the concepts of displacement, velocity, and acceleration
are used to describe an object moving in one dimension. There are also
situations in which the motion is along a curved path that lies in a plane. Such
two-dimensional motion can be described using the same concepts.

Where:
rԦ = final position
rԦo = initial position
Note: each positions are drawn from an
arbitrary coordinate origin.
Average Velocity & Acceleration
Instantaneous Velocity & Acceleration
Equations of Kinematics in Two
Dimensions

𝑉𝑓𝑦 = 𝑉𝑜𝑦 + 𝑎𝑦 𝑡 𝑉𝑓𝑥 = 𝑉𝑜𝑥 + 𝑎𝑥 𝑡

𝑉𝑓𝑦 2 = 𝑉𝑜𝑦 2 + 2𝑎𝑦 . 𝑦 𝑉𝑓𝑥 2 = 𝑉𝑜𝑥 2 + 2𝑎𝑥 . 𝑥
1 1
𝑦 = 𝑉𝑜𝑦 𝑡 + 𝑎𝑦 . 𝑡 2 𝑥 = 𝑉𝑜𝑥 𝑡 + 𝑎𝑥 . 𝑡 2
2 2
In Figure, the directions to the right and upward are the positive directions. In
the x direction, the spacecraft has an initial velocity component of v0x = +22
m/s and an acceleration component of ax = +24 m/s2. In the y direction, the
analogous quantities are v0y = +14 m/s and ay = +12 m/s2. At a time of t = 7.0 s,
find the x and y components of the spacecraft's displacement.

ANSWER:
x = 742 m
y = 392 m
This example also deals with the spacecraft in Figure. As in the previous example,
the x components of the craft's initial velocity and acceleration are v0x = +22
m/s and ax = +24 m/s2, respectively. The corresponding y components are v0y = +14
m/s and ay = +12 m/s2. At a time of t = 7.0 s, find the spacecraft's final velocity
(magnitude and direction).

ANSWER :
V = 213 m/s; 𝜃 = 27°
Projectile Motion
In the figure below shows an airplane moving horizontally with a constant velocity of +115
m/s at an altitude of 1050 m. The directions to the right and upward have been chosen as the
positive directions. The plane releases a “care package” that falls to the ground along a curved
trajectory. Ignoring air resistance, determine the time required for the package to hit the
ground.

ANSWER:
t = 14.6 s
In the previous problem shows a care package falling from a plane, and in the
figure below shows this package as package B and the plane is moving horizontally
with a constant velocity of +115 m/s at an altitude of 1050 m. Ignoring air
resistance, find the magnitude v and the directional angle θ of the final velocity
vector that the package has just before it strikes the ground.

ANSWER :
v = 184 m /s; 𝜃 = 51.3°
A placekicker kicks a football at an angle of θ = 40.0° above the horizontal axis, as
the figure shows. The initial speed of the ball is v0 = 22 m/s. Ignore air resistance,
and find the maximum height H that the ball attains.

ANSWER:
H = 10.20 m
ignore air resistance and use the data from the previous example to determine
the time of flight between kickoff and landing.

ANSWER:
t = 2.9 s
In the figure , ignore air resistance and calculate the range R of the
projectile.

ANSWER:
x = 49m