What have we studied so far?  

Here are questions to ask yourself while studying for the tests.  Although I hope that the lists include everything we study in a unit, I make no assurance that they do.

Bonus points for suggestions made by students that make their way onto this list.  

Within each unit, the items are not necessarily in a particular order.

Remember that anything from a previous unit is fair game for a unit test!

• Recognizing mathematical relationships.  Given a graph, can you identify the relationship (primarily linear and quadratic, but any others that came up in class will be fair game).  Given a relationship, can you identify the graph.  Can you talk intelligently about what the relationships mean?
• Having confidence in your numbers.  Can you identify which digits of a measured or calculated value actually mean something?  How do you know this?
• Justifying your answers.  Can you say why you think something is "correct"?
• We all know how to calculate it (sometimes), but what does area mean?  Volume?
• About how big is a foot? A meter? A square foot? A square meter? A cubic foot?  A cubic meter?
• Can you use your calculator or TI InterActive to enter data into lists, produce a graph, model an equation to fit the data, and do regressions on the data?  Given a graph can you find a reasonable equation to fit it?
• What were some of the relationships we found in the circle lab?  What do they mean?  Remember that we measured and calculated such quantities as radius, diameter, circumference, area, texture, color, volume, and mass.  Which of these related, and in what exact way?
• Can you apply the significant figures rules on the handout?

Unit II Constant Velocity Model

• What's the difference between a vector and a scalar?  What are some examples of each for this unit?
• What does the slope of a position-time graph mean?  What does it mean if the position-time graph has a negative slope?
• What does the intercept of a position-time graph mean?
• How do we construct a velocity-time graph?
• What is the difference between instantaneous and average?
• Can you write a verbal description of an object's motion from a position-time graph?  From a velocity-time graph?
• Can you write a position equation (with units) for an object from a graph or verbal description?
• Can you write a velocity equation (with units) for an object from a graph or verbal description?
• What does area under a velocity-time curve represent?
• Can you draw a motion map for an object?  Can you convert that motion map into an equation, graph, or verbal description?
• If we have equal areas both above and below the time axis on a velocity-time curve, what does this mean?
• If an object starts from a "point of choice", and proceeds at an angle on a grid, how is the velocity in the x (horizontal axis) direction related to the velocity in the y (vertical axis) direction? 

Unit III Constant Acceleration Model

• What does acceleration mean?  Why is it a difficult concept?  How would we know an object is accelerating?
• What are the units of acceleration?  What do those units mean?
• What do the motion graphs (pos-t, vel-t, acc-t) look like for an object with an acceleration?
• What does each aspect of those graphs (slope, intercept, etc.) mean? 
• How can we find an instantaneous velocity from a pos-t graph with a curved shape?
• Is acceleration a vector? Why?
• What does it mean to have a negative acceleration?
• What does "deceleration" mean?  Is a deceleration always negative?
• Can you describe how an object with acceleration moves by looking at its graphs? Its motion map? Its equation?
• Can you construct the other graphs if you are given only one of the graphs in a kinematics stack?
• Can you write the equations that describe pos, and vel for an object with physics variables and units?
• Can an object with an acceleration stop?  Change direction? Why doesn't the acceleration stop/change direction when the object does?
• How can you find out how far an object moved from a vel-t graph?
• Can you use the equations of constant acceleration to find unknown quantities?

Unit IV Inertia and Interactions (or Free Particle Model)

• What causes a change in motion?
• What is a simple definition of force?
• What things exert forces in everyday situations?
• Why does a dry ice block move at constant speed after a brief push?
• Why doesn't everything behave like the dry ice block?
• What does inertia mean?  What does it have to do with the dry ice block?
• What is the quantitative measurement of inertia?
• How does the table (floor, chair, etc.) know how much surface (or normal) force to exert? in other words How does "rigid" matter actually act? Can you explain how we know these things?
• What is the direction of surface or normal force?
• How much do two vectors at 90 degrees to each other affect each other?  How do we know this?
• What force often opposes motion?  What is the direction of this force?
• How would I know which forces are on an object by looking at  free-body diagram?  How would I know how strong the forces are?  Which direction they are?
• If one object exerts a force on another object, what does the other object do?  Does it matter if one is bigger (stronger, moving faster, etc.) than the other?  How do we know this?
• What is the sum of the forces on an object that is not accelerating?  On an object that is traveling at constant velocity?  Does it matter if the object is moving horizontally or vertically?
• What kinds of things affect the force of gravity on an object?
• Why doesn't air pressure affect the force of gravity on an object?
• What is weight?
• What is the quantitative relationship between the force of gravity and mass?  Can you write it in an equation format?
• How can I apply trig functions to find vector components?
• How do I write a "sum of the forces" equation?
• What kind of force does a rope exert?
• What happens to the surface force when something pushes down on an object?  When something pulls up on an object?  When the object is on a surface at an angle?
• Why do objects slide or not slide down ramps?
• What does a pulley do to the force in a rope?

• What causes an object to accelerate?
• What is the relationship between acceleration and mass?
• What is the relationship between force and acceleration?
• If an object has more than one force on it in a particular direction, which force makes the object accelerate?
• What does the term "system" mean?
• How does increasing the mass of one thing in the system affect the system?
• How does changing the force accelerating the system affect the system?
• If two objects act as a system, how can I find their acceleration?
• How does the surface/normal force change when an object is on a ramp?  Why?
• Why does an object slide down a ramp?
• How can you determine all the forces on an object on a ramp?
• How can you find the components of the Force of gravity for an object on a ramp? (remember the shortcuts)
• What is the difference between static and kinetic friction?
• What is the source of the friction force?
• What factors effect the force of friction? What factors don't effect it, or have a negligible effect?
• What is the relationship between surface force and normal force for force of friction?
• What does the Greek mu (coefficient of friction) mean in the equation for force of friction? 
• For a cart on a ramp, what does friction in the wheel bearings tend to do?  Friction b/w the wheels and the ramp?
• What do the pos-t, vel-t, accel-t graphs look like for an object with a constant force on it?

Unit VI Projectile Motion

• REVIEW: What is a model?  Can you fully describe and apply the four models we've studied up until now?
• REVIEW: Given initial conditions, how do I find average and instantaneous velocities, as well as displacement (Dpos) for an object thrown straight up or down (Wile Coyote worksheet)?
• What does it mean when we describe something as a projectile?
• What models describe a projectile? In which directions (dimensions) do they apply?
• What effect does mass of a projectile have on its acceleration and time of flight?  Can you explain why?
• Which hits the ground first, a projectile launched horizontally, or a projectile dropped from the same height?  Why?
• Imagine a projectile launched at some angle > 0 degrees.  What is the velocity at the top of its flight? What is the acceleration at the top of its flight?
• What is the relationship b/w initial velocity, angle of launch, and the two component velocities?  In other words: How can I use trigonometry to find the component velocities?
• What happens to the horizontal and vertical velocities of a projectile while it is in the air? Use the term "speed" in your answer.
• What happens to the horizontal and vertical velocities of a projectile while it is in the air? Use the term "acceleration" in your answer.
• How can I use equations to predict how long a projectile spends in the air?
• How can I use equations to predict how high a projectile (launched at some angle > 0 degrees) goes in the air?
• How can I use equations to predict how far a projectile travels horizontally?
• Here's a good question we didn't discuss (much): Why do we almost entirely consider objects with negligible air resistance?
• How can I motion map a projectile?
• A biologist aims a dart gun at a monkey hanging from a branch.  The monkey releases the branch at the same instant as the dart leaves the gun.  Where should the biologist aim?  In other words above, below, or right at the spot they want to hit?

Above was revised on 20 February 2003.