Question

What does an acceleration of 3.5 m/s2 mean for magnitude and direction?
answers:
The object is traveling 3.5 m/s/s in a negative direction.

The object is traveling 3.5 m/s in a positive direction.

The object is traveling 3.5 m/s in a negative direction.

The object is traveling 3.5 m/s/s in a positive direction.

Answer 1

An acceleration of 3.5 m/s² means that the object's velocity increases by 3.5 meters per second for every second that elapses. The magnitude of the acceleration is 3.5 m/s², and it is positive if there is no negative sign associated with it. Therefore, if we assume the given acceleration has no additional context (like a negative sign), the correct interpretation is:

**The object is traveling 3.5 m/s/s in a positive direction.**