Science
Displacement and velocity.
Definition
Displacement is the straight-line distance and direction from an object's starting position to its final position, making it a vector quantity. Velocity is the rate of change of displacement with respect to time, also a vector, unlike speed which is scalar.
Examples
Real-world.
- 1 Walking 3 blocks north then 4 blocks east gives a displacement of 5 blocks northeast, even though you walked 7 blocks total
- 2 A car driving around a circular track returns to its start with zero displacement despite covering the full track distance
- 3 An object thrown straight up and caught at the same height has zero net displacement
Key Fact
Average velocity = displacement / time (v = Δx/Δt); speed = distance / time.