What is the difference between velocity and acceleration?

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

To approach this question, I will examine each option in turn and assess its accuracy about velocity and acceleration.

Option a: 'Velocity is a vector quantity, acceleration is a scalar quantity.' This statement is incorrect because velocity is indeed a vector (has both magnitude and direction), but acceleration is also a vector, not a scalar. Therefore this option misclassifies acceleration and is false for that reason.

Option b: 'Velocity is the rate of change of acceleration, acceleration is the rate of change of velocity.' Here, the description swaps the actual definitions. Velocity is not the rate of change of acceleration; it is the rate of change of displacement. Acceleration is the rate of change of velocity. This option confuses the relationship between the quantities, making it incorrect.

Option c: 'Velocity is a scalar quantity, acceleration is a vector quantity.' This option is also incorrect because velocity is a vector (it has both speed and direction). Acceleration is a vector as well, so both are vectors, not a mix of scalar and vector as this statement suggests.

Option d: 'Velocity is the rate of change of displacement, acceleration is the rate of change of velocity.' This is the correct characterization. Velocity quantifies how displacement changes over time (with direction), and acceleration quantifies how velocity changes over time (with direction). The two facts align with standard kinematics definitions and differentiate the two concepts properly.

Summarizing the missteps: options a, b, and c either misstate the vector nature or swap the definitional roles between velocity, displacement, and acceleration. Option d correctly identifies velocity as the rate of change of displacement and acceleration as the rate of change of velocity, which matches the standard physics definitions.

UCIC 202503 PHYS101 Quiz 1

What is the difference between velocity and acceleration?

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