The Basic Idea

Accelerating objects are objects that are changing their velocity. They are speeding up, slowing down, or changing directions. 
 

There are three very similar versions of this question. Each version provides a verbal description of a motion with a dot diagram and asks the learner to determine if the object is accelerating or not. This is one of the three versions:

Version 1:
The dot diagram represents the motion of a bicycle as it moves from left to right. Is the bicycle accelerating?
 

 

 

How to Think About This Situation

In Physics we distinguish between two distinctly different motions - constant velocity motions and accelerated motions. Accelerated motions are characterized by a speeding up, slowing down, or direction change. (In this Concept Builder, there is no direction change taking place.) So to determine if an object is accelerating, inspect the diagram to see if there is a speeding up or a slowing down motion being described. If there is, then the object is accelerating. 

Dot diagrams like the one shown represent a motion by dots that show the position of an object at regular intervals of time. If the spacing between consecutive dots increases over the course of the motion, then the object is increasing the amount of distance covered per time as the motion continues. That is to say that its speed is increasing. 

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Try the link below to our Tutorial for more information:

Acceleration

Ticker Tape Diagrams (i.e., Dot Diagrams)

 


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