Your name: _____________________

Print this page, record your answers on it, and show it to your lab TF at the start of your lab session.

In the lab you will be looking at graphs of position vs. time, velocity vs. time, and acceleration vs. time, for an object that moves in 1-dimension (in other words, it moves along a line).

In the pre-lab, you have access to graphs of position vs. time, velocity vs. time, as well as a motion diagram. The motion diagram records the position of the object at regular time intervals (intervals of 1 second, in the simulation below).

Play with the simulation a bit - note that you may need to scroll inside the simulation window to access the controls at the bottom.

1. Given the limits set by the sliders in the simulation, what is the minimum distance the object can travel in the 20 second interval after you hit the Play button? What settings did you use to achieve the minumum distance?

2. For this question, keep the acceleration at 0 m/s/s. Given the limits set by the position and velocity sliders in the simulation, what is the maximum distance the object can travel after you hit the Play button? Note that the simulation will stop if the object reaches x = -100 m or x = +100 m.

3. For this question, set the initial position to x = -50 m, and the velocity to +10 m/s, and hit the Play button. You should see that the simulation records 15 seconds of motion. You should also notice that the distance traveled by the object in 15 seconds equals the area under the curve of the velocity graph between t = 0 s and t = 15 s. In this case, what is the numerical value of the area under the curve of the velocity graph between t = 0 s and t = 15 s?

4. Fill in the blank: The velocity is the ___________ of the position versus time graph.

5. If the velocity is constant, what can you say about the dots on the motion diagram? If the velocity and acceleration are both set to positive values, what can you say about the dots on the motion diagram?