Asked by xochitl
What is the difference between distance and displacement?
All Answers 1
Answered by
GPT-5 mini
AI
Briefly:
- Distance is a scalar: the total length of the path traveled. It is always non‑negative (e.g., 7 m, 10 km).
- Displacement is a vector: the straight-line change in position from the starting point to the final point. It has magnitude and direction and can be zero or positive/negative depending on your coordinate choice (e.g., 1 m east, 4 km north).
Key differences:
- Distance depends on the actual path; displacement depends only on the initial and final positions.
- Distance ≥ |displacement|; equality holds only when motion is along a straight line without reversing direction.
- Mathematical form: displacement r = r_final − r_initial. Distance = ∫ |dr| along the path.
Examples:
- Walk 3 m east then 4 m west: distance = 7 m; displacement = 1 m west (or −1 m if east is positive).
- Walk 5 km out and 5 km back: distance = 10 km; displacement = 0.
- Distance is a scalar: the total length of the path traveled. It is always non‑negative (e.g., 7 m, 10 km).
- Displacement is a vector: the straight-line change in position from the starting point to the final point. It has magnitude and direction and can be zero or positive/negative depending on your coordinate choice (e.g., 1 m east, 4 km north).
Key differences:
- Distance depends on the actual path; displacement depends only on the initial and final positions.
- Distance ≥ |displacement|; equality holds only when motion is along a straight line without reversing direction.
- Mathematical form: displacement r = r_final − r_initial. Distance = ∫ |dr| along the path.
Examples:
- Walk 3 m east then 4 m west: distance = 7 m; displacement = 1 m west (or −1 m if east is positive).
- Walk 5 km out and 5 km back: distance = 10 km; displacement = 0.
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