Scalars, vectors and resolving vectorsEdexcel International A Level Physics: Flashcards

What these 13 flashcards ask

What is a scalar quantity?
What is a vector quantity?
Give three examples of vector quantities.
Give three examples of scalar quantities.
What is the difference between distance and displacement?
How do you find the horizontal component of a force F at angle θ above the horizontal?
How do you find the vertical component of a force F at angle θ above the horizontal?
How is the resultant of two perpendicular vectors A and B calculated?
How do you add vectors by scale drawing?
What is a resultant vector?
Why is average velocity zero for a return journey?
What does it mean to resolve a vector?
What is the magnitude of the resultant of a 30 N and a 40 N force at right angles?

Exam questions on Scalars, vectors and resolving vectors

A hiker walks 3.0 km due east and then 4.0 km due north, taking 2.0 hours in total.
Calculate the hiker's average speed and the magnitude of the hiker's average velocity.2 marks
A child pulls a sledge across level snow using a rope. The tension in the rope is 80 N and the rope is at 30° above the horizontal.
The child lifts the handle so that the rope is at 45° above the horizontal, with the tension unchanged. Calculate the new horizontal component of the tension.2 marks
A boat has a speed of 3.0 m s⁻¹ relative to the water and is steered at right angles to the banks of a straight river. The river flows at 1.5 m s⁻¹ parallel to the banks.
Calculate the magnitude and direction of the resultant velocity of the boat relative to the bank.3 marks

Written by the Exaim team, led by Shaun Daswani (Head of Upper Secondary, Improve ME Institute; MSc Financial Mathematics, Imperial College London; BSc, UCL) and Jason Daswani (operational lead, Improve ME Institute; LSE).