PHYS 101 Chapter Notes - Chapter 3: Parallelogram, Projectile Motion

• School: McGill University
• Department: Physics
• Course: PHYS 101
• Professor: Kenneth Ragan

Document Summary

A quantity such as velocity, that has both a magnitude and a direction, is called a vector. A quantity such as mass, that has only a magnitude, is called a scalar. Addition of vectors can be done graphically by placing the tail of each successive arrow at the tip of the previous one. The sum, or resultant vector, is the arrow drawn from the tail of the first vector to the tip of the last vector. Two vectors can also be added using the parallelogram method. Vectors can be added more accurately by adding their components along chosen axes with the aid of trigonometric functions. A vector of magnitude making an angle with the axis has components: (cid:3051)=cos. Given the components, we can find a vector"s magnitude and direction from: (cid:3052)=sin. Projectile motion is the motion of an object in an arc near the earth"s surface under the effect of gravity alone.