I walked my dog 100 meters North to the end of the block, and 50 meters East to the park. After the park, I walked 60 meters South to my friend’s house. What is the total distance traveled? Is the displacement of my journey scalar or vector?
Question
Answer:
The answer is below
Explanation:
Distance is a measurement of how far apart two points are. Distance is a scalar quantity, i.e. it has magnitude and no direction.
Total distance traveled = distance traveled north + distance traveled east + distance traveled south
Total distance traveled = 100 + 50 + 60 = 210 meters
Displacement is the shortest distance between the starting and end points.
displacement² = 50² + (100 – 60)²
displacement² = 2500 + 1600
displacement = 64 meters
The displacement of the journey is vector, because displacement is a vector quantity.