- #1
Gibson29
- 1
- 0
Hello,
Ill keep this as brief as possible.
I am a student taking grade 12 physics through correspondence. I have just started this week, and am finding the material very simple so far (1-d kinematics).
Periodically, I need to send in small packages of work which I have done. There are very few problems which will actually be evaluated, so obviously I want to make sure I am doing them correctly.
They gave me this question asking me to draw a vector diagram. I have no trouble with any of the terminology, or at being unclear as to what exactly it is I need to do. My problem comes with the wording which tells me the direction of my second vector. I wouldn't waste anyone's time here with such a simple problem, but being a correspondence student, I don't have a teacher whom I can ask for simple clarification. Ill just type the problem exactly as it is in my book:
"In a total time of 2.0 min, a duck on a pond paddles 22m [36degrees N of E], and then paddles another 65m [E 25degrees S]."
That [E 25degrees S] is really confusing me. The first direction was extremely clear, but for the second, I had no idea if I should be using the direction E as my frame of reference and have the vector going 25 degree south of that, or vice versa, or if I should be using my starting point as a frame of reference for all my vectors.
I *think* my diagram is correct, it would just be stupid to lose valuable marks on the one vector diagram I need to have evaluated due to poor wording. (Or more likely just me being poorly informed.)
As I said, this is the first week I'm working on this, I've never been in a physics course before, and I have no teacher to clarify this ridiculously simple question.
Any help or insight would be much appreciated. Thanks,
Steve
Ill keep this as brief as possible.
I am a student taking grade 12 physics through correspondence. I have just started this week, and am finding the material very simple so far (1-d kinematics).
Periodically, I need to send in small packages of work which I have done. There are very few problems which will actually be evaluated, so obviously I want to make sure I am doing them correctly.
They gave me this question asking me to draw a vector diagram. I have no trouble with any of the terminology, or at being unclear as to what exactly it is I need to do. My problem comes with the wording which tells me the direction of my second vector. I wouldn't waste anyone's time here with such a simple problem, but being a correspondence student, I don't have a teacher whom I can ask for simple clarification. Ill just type the problem exactly as it is in my book:
"In a total time of 2.0 min, a duck on a pond paddles 22m [36degrees N of E], and then paddles another 65m [E 25degrees S]."
That [E 25degrees S] is really confusing me. The first direction was extremely clear, but for the second, I had no idea if I should be using the direction E as my frame of reference and have the vector going 25 degree south of that, or vice versa, or if I should be using my starting point as a frame of reference for all my vectors.
I *think* my diagram is correct, it would just be stupid to lose valuable marks on the one vector diagram I need to have evaluated due to poor wording. (Or more likely just me being poorly informed.)
As I said, this is the first week I'm working on this, I've never been in a physics course before, and I have no teacher to clarify this ridiculously simple question.
Any help or insight would be much appreciated. Thanks,
Steve