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Course: American System Physics
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American System Physics

A Physics Toolkit

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Representing Motion

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Accelerated Motion

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Forces in One Dimension

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Displacement and Force in Two Dimensions

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Motion in Two Dimensions

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Gravitation

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Rotational Motion

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Momentum and Its Conservation

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Energy and Its Conservation

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Thermal Energy

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States of Matter

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Vibrations and Waves

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Sound

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Fundamentals of Light

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Reflection and Refraction

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Interference and Diffraction

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Electrostatics

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Electric Current and Circuits

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Magnetic Fields

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Electromagnetic Induction and Electromagnetism

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Quantum Theory and the Atom

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Solid-State Electronics

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Nuclear and Particle Physics

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Quiz

2.1 Picturing Motion and Coordinate Systems – Quiz

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Picturing Motion and Coordinate Systems American Physics quiz: free practice for American System Physics. Work through this Picturing Motion and Coordinate Systems American Physics quiz and get instant feedback on every answer. If you get stuck, review the 2.1 Picturing Motion and Coordinate Systems — Notes lesson. More practice: American System Physics — all units. Syllabus: OpenStax free science textbooks.

  • Questions count: 50
  • Passing grade: A-
  • Time limit:
Start Quiz
1.
A puck slides across an air table and is photographed at equal time intervals, giving the particle-model motion diagram shown. How is it moving?
Dr Dabour Hub Academy - figure 1
Slowing down while moving in the −x direction
Speeding up while moving in the −x direction
Slowing down while moving in the +x direction
Moving at constant velocity
2.
The motion diagram shows a car braking at a junction (equal time intervals). In which frame does the car first come to rest?
Dr Dabour Hub Academy - figure 2
Frame 2
Frame 4
Frame 6
Frame 0
3.
The map shows buildings on a straight street, with the school as the origin and east positive. What is the position of the library?
Dr Dabour Hub Academy - figure 3
+500 m
500 m west is a distance, not a position
−500 m
0 m
4.
A dog makes the three displacements drawn tip to tail. What is its resultant displacement?
Dr Dabour Hub Academy - figure 4
20 m east
4 m west
10 m east
4 m east
5.
A small boat sails 6 km north and then 8 km east, as shown. What is the magnitude of its displacement?
Dr Dabour Hub Academy - figure 5
10 km
14 km
2 km
48 km
6.
Two coordinate systems are drawn along the same road, with different origins. Using system B, what is the position of the post office?
Dr Dabour Hub Academy - figure 6
0 km
−4 km
+4 km
+7 km
7.
The vertical motion diagram shows a ball thrown straight up, from frame 0 to frame 4 (equal time intervals). Which description is correct?
Dr Dabour Hub Academy - figure 7
It moves in the +y direction and speeds up
It moves at constant velocity upward
It moves in the +y direction and slows down
It moves in the −y direction and slows down
8.
A lift travels from floor 3 to the basement, as shown (up is positive, origin at ground). What is its displacement?
Dr Dabour Hub Academy - figure 8
+15 m
−9 m
+9 m
−15 m
9.
A seated passenger is on the moving train shown. Which statement about her motion is correct?
Dr Dabour Hub Academy - figure 9
She is at rest relative to the train but moving east relative to the platform observer
She is at rest in every frame of reference
She is moving relative to the train but at rest relative to the platform
Motion cannot be described without choosing the Sun as origin
10.
A video of a remote-control car is analysed (table). What is the displacement from frame 2 to frame 5?
−2.4 m
+2.4 m
+3.0 m
+1.8 m
11.
A stopwatch is read at the start and end of three stages of an experiment (table). What is the time interval for stage B?
16.4 s
−7.6 s
7.6 s
12.0 s
12.
A delivery robot moves along a corridor in the stages listed (east positive). What are its total distance and final displacement?
Distance 6 m; displacement 34 m west
Distance 34 m; displacement 34 m east
Distance 20 m; displacement 6 m east
Distance 34 m; displacement 6 m west
13.
Which row of the table classifies the quantity correctly?
Row 2
Row 1
Row 3
Row 4
14.
Two students record the same walk using different origins (table). What does the data show about the displacement from 0 s to 6 s?
Student 1 gets +9 m and student 2 gets +19 m
Both give +9 m, because displacement does not depend on the origin
Both give 0 m
The students must have made a mistake because the positions differ
15.
Positions of a sled on a slope were read from photographs taken every 0.2 s (table). What type of motion diagram would these data produce?
Equally spaced dots: constant velocity
Dots getting closer: slowing down
Dots getting further apart: speeding up
Dots all in one place: at rest
16.
What is motion?
Any change in mass
The total path length only
A force acting on an object
A change in position relative to a chosen reference point over time
17.
In which situation is the particle model most suitable?
A plane flying 800 km between two cities
A gymnast doing a somersault on a mat
A spinning top in one place
A door swinging on its hinges
18.
What is the origin of a coordinate system?
The final position of the object
The point where the position variable is zero
The fastest point of the motion
The end of the time interval
19.
With east as positive, a cat walks from x = +7 m to x = −2 m. What is its displacement?
+9 m
+5 m
−9 m
−5 m
20.
A swimmer swims 50 m to the end of a pool and 50 m back to the start. What are her distance and displacement?
0 m and 100 m
100 m and 100 m
50 m and 50 m
100 m and 0 m
21.
A car is at x = −4.0 m at t = 2.0 s and at x = +11.0 m at t = 5.0 s. What are Δx and Δt?
Δx = +15.0 m, Δt = 3.0 s
Δx = +7.0 m, Δt = 3.0 s
Δx = +15.0 m, Δt = 7.0 s
Δx = −15.0 m, Δt = 3.0 s
22.
Two tugs pull a barge in turn: the first moves it 3 m east and the second a further 4 m east. Where does the barge end up relative to its start?
1 m east
7 m east
5 m east
7 m west
23.
A crab walks 3 m east and then 4 m west. What is its resultant displacement?
7 m west
1 m east
1 m west
5 m west
24.
Which statement about distance is correct?
It is a vector with a direction
It is zero for any round trip
It depends only on start and end points
It is a scalar that can never be negative
25.
A student defines the top of a cliff as the origin with up positive. A stone falls to the beach 25 m below. Which is correct?
Its final position is −25 m and its displacement is −25 m
Its final position is +25 m and its displacement is +25 m
Its final position is 0 m
Its displacement is +25 m because distance is positive
26.
A student records positions from a video but uses the front bumper in some frames and the rear bumper in others. What is the effect?
No effect, because the car is one object
Some displacements will be wrong by the car’s length; one reference point must be used
Only the time intervals will be wrong
The positions will all be negative
27.
Which order of steps correctly produces a particle-model motion diagram from a video?
Number the dots → choose random frames → add an origin → replace by dots
Draw an axis → join the dots with a curve → take one frame → number it
Take frames at equal time intervals → replace the object by a dot → number the dots → add an origin and positive direction
Measure the speed → draw one dot → add arrows at random times → choose an origin
28.
A frame of reference is changed from the road to a moving bus. What happens to the description of a passenger sitting on the bus?
She changes from at rest to moving
Nothing changes
Her distance becomes negative
She changes from moving to at rest
29.
The viewpoint relative to which positions and motion are measured is the frame of _____.
motion
reference
origin
distance
30.
A quantity with magnitude only, such as mass or speed, is called a _____.
vector
resultant
scalar
displacement
31.
The single vector with the same effect as two or more vectors added together is the _____.
origin
scalar
interval
resultant
32.
A ball rolls from x = 1.5 m to x = −2.5 m. Its displacement is _____.
−4.0 m
+4.0 m
−1.0 m
+1.0 m
33.
Adding 9 m north and 12 m east, the magnitude of the resultant is _____.
21 m
15 m
3 m
108 m
34.
A vector has both magnitude and direction. True or false?
True
False, it has magnitude only
False, it has direction only
True only for forces
35.
Position is a scalar because it is measured in metres. True or false?
True
False, because position includes direction from the origin, so it is a vector
True only on a number line
False, because position has no unit
36.
Weight is the vector quantity that matches the scalar mass in the lesson’s scalar–vector table. True or false?
False, the matching vector is displacement
False, mass is a vector
True
True only on Earth
37.
Displacement can be negative. True or false?
False, only distance can be negative
False, it is always positive
True only for time
True
38.
Distance can be negative when an object moves west. True or false?
False, because distance is a scalar that is never negative
True
True only if west is chosen as negative
False, because distance is always zero
39.
A runner who finishes a 400 m lap at the starting line has a displacement of 0 m. True or false?
False, it is 400 m
True
False, it is 200 m
True only if she ran anticlockwise
40.
Walking 5 m north and then 12 m east gives a resultant displacement of magnitude 13 m. True or false?
False, it is 17 m
False, it is 7 m
True
True only if walked in that order
41.
For clock readings of 14.2 s and 20.0 s, the time interval is 34.2 s. True or false?
True
False, it is −5.8 s
True only for timers in minutes
False, because Δt = 20.0 − 14.2 = 5.8 s
42.
Changing the positive direction from east to west changes the sign of every position and displacement. True or false?
True
False, only positions change
False, nothing changes
True only for distances
43.
The resultant of several displacements is drawn from the tip of the last vector to the tail of the first. True or false?
True
False, because it is drawn from the tail of the first to the tip of the last
True only for two vectors
False, because resultants are never drawn
44.
For a motion diagram, frames must be taken at equal time intervals so that the spacing shows how fast the object moves. True or false?
False, any times can be used
True only for objects at rest
True
False, the dots should always be equally spaced
45.
A ship crossing an ocean can be treated as a particle, but the same ship docking in a narrow harbour may not be. True or false?
False, a ship is never a particle
False, it is always a particle
True only in calm weather
True
46.
The positions in the table show that the cyclist moved in the negative direction. True or false?
True
False, the positions are increasing
False, the cyclist is at rest
True only after 20 s
47.
For the three legs in the table, the total distance travelled equals the magnitude of the resultant displacement. True or false?
True
False, because the distance is 16 m while the resultant is 6 m east
False, because the resultant is 16 m
True only if the legs are east
48.
Motion looks different from different frames of reference. True or false?
False, motion is the same for all observers
True only for light
True
False, only the ground frame is valid
49.
A time interval is a vector because time moves forward. True or false?
True
True only for long intervals
False, because it has no unit
False, because a time interval has magnitude only, so it is a scalar
50.
An object that moves from x = −6 m to x = −1 m has a positive displacement even though both positions are negative. True or false?
True
False, the displacement is negative
False, the displacement is zero
True only if it moved west
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Part of Representing Motion — see every lesson and quiz in this unit.
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