Question

James and Haley went to the speedway to watch cars race around an oval track. One car traveled at a constant speed for the entire race. James told Haley that the car was accelerating during race, but Haley said James was wrong since the car traveled at a constant speed. Who was right and why? Race car image from Pixabay.com Question 17 options: James was right since the car changed direction during the race. Haley was right because the car traveled at a constant speed. Acceleration is a change in velocity. James was right because the car was a race car and all race cars accelerate during a race. Haley was right since the car didn't win the race it was not accelerating.

Answer 1

James was right since the car changed direction during the race.

(watch video from Khan Academy, explains change in velocity)

Answer 2

Answer: James was right since the car changed direction during the race

Explanation:

Acceleration is defined as the rate of change of velocity per unit time:

$a=\frac{\Delta v}{\Delta t}$

This means that an object is accelerating whenever there is a change in its velocity. However, velocity is a vector: this means that it has both a magnitude (the speed) and a direction. Therefore, we can say that an object is accelerating when there is a change either in its speed or in its direction.

In this problem, the car travels at constant speed around an oval track: its speed remains constant, but its direction constantly changes, since hte track is oval. Therefore, the velocity of the car changes, so the car is accelerating, and James is right.