Speed
Learning Objectives
- Students will be able to calculate average speed from distance and time
- Students will understand that speed is a scalar quantity
- Students will distinguish between average and instantaneous speed
Core Concepts
- Speed: distance traveled per unit time
- Average speed: total distance / total time
- Instantaneous speed: speed at a specific moment
Formulas
$$v_{avg} = \frac{d}{t}$$
Total distance divided by total time elapsed
Units
| meter per second | m/s |
| kilometer per hour | km/h |
Interesting Fact
The speed of light (3 × 10⁸ m/s) is the fastest anything can travel
Key Scientist
Galileo Galilei
First systematic studies of speed and motion
Modern Research
Particle accelerators achieve speeds approaching light speed; relativistic speed corrections are essential for GPS and particle physics experiments.
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