APPLYING MEASUREMENTS IN

PHYSICS: Vectors
for GENERAL PHYSICS 1/ Grade 12
Quarter 1/ Week 2

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OBJECTIVES
At the end of the lesson, you should be able to:
K: identify experimental errors and how to estimate errors from multiple
measurements of a physical quantity using variance;
S: solve measurement problems involving conversion of units and
expression of measurements in scientific notation;
: demonstrate how to add vectors graphically and by component
method; and
A: explain the importance of measurements in daily life.

LEARNING COMPETENCIES

Differentiate vector and scalar quantities (STEM_GP12V-Ia-8).

Perform addition of vectors (STEM_GP12V-Ia-9).

Rewrite vectors in component form (STEM_GP12V-Ia-10).

PRE-TEST
Let’s test your stock knowledge!

A. Sorting Out Vectors and Scalars

Directions: Complete the data table below by sorting out the

quantities into scalar and vector. Write the words in their
appropriate boxes. Do this in your Science notebook/Activity Sheet.

Force Mass Distance Density Velocity

Acceleration Speed Temperature Time Direction

Scalar Vector

Identifying Scalars and Vectors

Physical quantities can be specified completely by giving a single

number and the appropriate unit. For example, “a TV program lasts 40 min” or
“the water tumbler holds 500 mL” or “the distance between two posts is 50
m.” A physical quantity that can be specified completely in this manner is
called a scalar quantity. A scalar is a quantity that is completely specified by
its magnitude and has no direction. Examples of scalars are mass, volume,
distance, temperature, energy, and time.

When giving someone directions to your house, you must include both
the distance and the direction. The information “two kilometers north” is an
example of a vector. A vector is a quantity that includes both a magnitude
and a direction. Other examples of vectors are velocity, acceleration, and
force.

Vectors are arrows that represent two pieces of information: a

magnitude value (the length of the arrow) and a directional value (the way
the arrow is pointed). In terms of movement, the information contained in the
vector is the distance traveled and the direction traveled. Vectors give us a
graphical method to calculate the sum of several simultaneous movements.
 We draw a vector from the initial point or origin (called the “tail” of a
vector) to the end or terminal point (called the “head” of a vector), marked
by an arrowhead. Magnitude is the length of a vector and is always a positive
scalar quantity.
To sum it up, a vector quantity has a direction and a magnitude, while
a scalar has only a magnitude. You can tell if a quantity is a vector by
whether it has a direction associated with it.

Adding Vectors Using Pythagorean theorem

Consider the following examples below.

Example 1: Blog walks 35 m East, rests for 20 s and then walks 25 m East.
What is Blog’s overall displacement?
Solve graphically by drawing a scale diagram.

1 cm = 10 m

Place vectors head to tail and measure the resultant vector.

Solve algebraically by adding the two magnitudes. We can only do

this because the vectors are in the same direction.
R= 35 m East + 25 m East = 60 m East
Example 2: Blog walks 35 m [E], rests for 20 s and then walks 25 m [W].
What is Blog’s overall displacement?
 x x
1 2

Using algebraic solution, we can still add the two magnitudes. We can
only do this because the vectors are parallel. We must make one vector
negative to indicate opposite direction.

R= 35 m East + 25 m West
= 35 m East + – 25 m East
= 10 m East (Note that 25 m West is the same as – 25 m East)
If the vectors occur such that they are perpendicular to one another,
the Pythagorean theorem may be used to determine the resultant.

Example 3: Eric leaves the base camp and hikes 11 km, north and
then hikes 11 km east. Determine Eric's resulting displacement.

This problem asks to determine the result of adding two displacement

vectors that are at right angles to each other. This can be added together
to produce a resultant vector that is directed both north and east. When the
two vectors are added head-to-tail as shown below, the resultant is the
hypotenuse of a right triangle. The resultant can be determined using the
Pythagorean theorem; it has a magnitude of 15.6 km.

Source: https://www.physicsclassroom.com

The Pythagorean theorem works when the two added vectors are at
right angles to one another - such as for adding a north vector and an east
vector.

Consider the vector addition problem:

Example 4:
A student drives his car 6.0 km, North before making a right-hand turn
and driving 6.0 km to the East. Finally, the student makes a left-hand turn and
travels another 2.0 km to the north. What is the magnitude of the overall
displacement of the student?
When these three vectors are added together in head-to-tail fashion,
the resultant is a vector that extends from the tail of the first vector (6.0 km,
North, shown in red) to the arrowhead of the third vector (2.0 km, North,
shown in green). The head-to-tail vector addition diagram is shown below.

Source: https://www.physicsclassroom.com

The resultant vector (drawn in black) is not the hypotenuse of any right
triangle yet it would be possible to force this resultant vector to be the
hypotenuse of a right triangle. To do so, the order in which the three vectors
are added must be changed. The vectors above were drawn in the order in
which they were driven. But if the three vectors are added in the order 6.0 km,
N + 2.0 km, N + 6.0 km, E, then the diagram will look like this:

Source: https://www.physicsclassroom.com

After rearranging the order in which the three vectors are added, the
resultant vector is now the hypotenuse of a right triangle. The lengths of the
perpendicular sides of the right triangle are 8.0 m, North (6.0 km + 2.0 km)
and 6.0 km, East. The magnitude of the resultant vector (R) can be
determined using the Pythagorean theorem.

𝑅2 = (8.0 𝑘𝑚)2 + (6.0 𝑘𝑚)2

𝑅2 = 64.0 𝑘𝑚 + 36.0 𝑘𝑚
𝑅2 = 100.0 𝑘𝑚
√𝑅2 = √100.0 𝑘𝑚2
𝑹 = 𝟏𝟎. 𝟎 𝒌𝒎

The size of the resultant was not affected by this change in order. This
illustrates that the resultant is independent by the order in which they are added.
Adding vectors A + B + C gives the same resultant as adding vectors B + A + C or
even C + B + A as long as all three vectors are included with their specified
magnitude and direction, the resultant will be the same. This means that vector
addition is commutative (the order of addition is unimportant).

The direction of a resultant vector can often be determined by use of

trigonometric functions. Recall the meaning of the useful mnemonic SOH CAH TOA of
the three common trigonometric functions - sine, cosine, and tangent functions.
These three trigonometric functions can be applied to the hiker problem to
determine the direction of the hiker's overall displacement. The process begins by
the selection of one of the two angles (other than the right angle) of the triangle.
Once the angle is selected, any of the three functions can be used to find the
measure of the angle. Write the function and proceed with the proper algebraic
steps to solve for the measure of the angle. The work is shown below.

Source: https://www.physicsclassroom.com

Vector Addition: Component Method

When vectors to be added are not perpendicular, the method of addition

by components described below can be used. To add two or more vectors A, B, C,
… by the component method, follow this procedure:

1. Draw each vector.

2. Find the x- and y- components of each vector.

3. Find the sum of the x- components.

∑⃗𝒗 𝒙 = 𝒗
⃗ 𝟏𝒙 ⃗𝒗 𝟐𝒙 + ⃗𝒗 𝟑𝒙
+

4. Find the sum of the y- components.

∑⃗𝒗 𝒚 = 𝒗
⃗ 𝟏𝒚 ⃗𝒗 𝟐𝒚 + ⃗𝒗
+
 5. Use the sum of the x- components and the sum of the y- componentsto find the
resultant (magnitude) and its angle (direction).

• Magnitude: (⃗𝒗 𝑹)𝟐 = (∑⃗𝒗 𝒙)𝟐 + (∑⃗𝒗 𝒚)𝟐

• Direction: Use any of the trigonometric functions: sine, cosine,tangent

Example 5: An ant crawls on a tabletop. It moves 2 cm East, turns 3 cm400 North of

East and finally moves 2.5 cm North. What is the ant’s total displacement?

Given: ⃗𝒅 𝟏 = 𝟐 𝒄𝒎 𝑬 ⃗𝒅 𝟐 = 𝟑 𝒄𝒎 𝟒𝟎𝟎 𝑵𝑬 ⃗𝒅 𝟑 = 𝟐. 𝟓 𝒄𝒎 𝑵

Find: 𝒅𝑹
Solution:

Step 1: Draw the vectors

Step 2: The 2-cm vector has no component along the y-axis and the
2.5 cm has no component along the x- axis. The components of the 3 cm
vector are found this way,

⃗𝒅𝟐𝒚
𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝟒𝟎𝟎 =

𝟑 𝒄𝒎
⃗𝒅 𝟐𝒚 = (𝟑 𝒄𝒎)(𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝟒𝟎𝟎)
= (𝟑 𝒄𝒎)(𝟎. 𝟔𝟒)
⃗𝒅 𝟐𝒚 = 𝟏. 𝟗𝟐 𝒄𝒎
 ⃗𝒅 𝟐𝒙
𝐜𝐨𝐬 𝟒𝟎𝟎 =
𝟑 𝒄𝒎
⃗𝒅 𝟐𝒙 = (𝟑 𝒄𝒎)(𝐜𝐨𝐬 𝟒𝟎𝟎)
= (𝟑 𝒄𝒎)(𝟎. 𝟕𝟕)
⃗𝒅 𝟐𝒙 = 𝟐. 𝟑𝟏 𝒄𝒎

To show the components of the vectors, you may present them in a table.

Vector dx dy

2 cm E 2.00 cm 0

3 cm 40O NE 2.31 cm 1.92 cm

2.5 cm N 0 2.50 cm

∑ dx = 4.31 cm ∑ dy = 4.42 cm

Step 3: If the sum of the components on each axis is drawn, we get

this figure

Use the Pythagorean theorem to solve for the magnitude of the

resultant.

(dR)2 = (∑ dx)2 + (∑ dy)2

= (4. 311 cm) 2 + (4.42 cm)2

dR = √ 18.58 cm 2 + 19.54 cm 2

= √ 38. 12 cm2

dR = 6.17 cm
 To solve for the direction, Θ,

tan Θ = 4.42 cm
4.31 cm
= 1.03
Θ = 45.85 o

Therefore, the final displacement is … dR = 6.17 cm 45.85 o NE.

To add vectors that are not in the same or perpendicular directions, we

use method of components. All vectors can be described in terms of two
components called the x component and the y component. Adding the
vectors graphically using their components produces the same result.
Components can be added using math methods because all x components
are in the same plane as are all y components. Furthermore, x and y
components are perpendicular and can be added to each other using
Pythagorean theorem.

Activity:

A. Distinguishing between Vector and Scalar Quantities

Directions: Classify each quantity as either a vector or a scalar quantity.
Put a check mark in the appropriate box. Do this in your Science
notebook/Answer Sheet.

VECTOR SCALAR
10 meters
1600 calories
20 degrees Celsius
40 m/sec, East
520 bytes
5 mi., South
Northwest
 B. Adding Vectors Using the Component Method

Directions: Solve the given problem. Show your solution in your

notebook.

Problem: Vicky walks 8 km East, then 5 km South and finally 6 km West.

Find her final displacement.

The table below shows the components of the vectors.

Vector dx dy

8 km E 8 km 0

5 km S 0 - 5 km

6 km W -6 km 0

∑ dx = ?? ∑ dy = ??

Performance Task:

A. Solve the given problem below. Show your solutions.

Merly leaves her house, drives 26 km due North, then turns onto a street and
continues in a direction 30O NE for 35 km and finally turns onto the highway due
East for 40 km. What is her total displacement from her house?

RESULTANT VECTORS
B. Vector Addition Worksheet Directions: Sketch, (use graphing paper) then
calculates the magnitude and direction of the resultant for each of the following
pairs of vectors.

1. 4.00m N and 6.00m E

2. 4.00m N and 5.00m S
3. 40.0m/s N and 50.0 m/s W
4. 365 cm W and 300. cm S
5. 14.0 m N, 12.0 m W, 20.0 m S and 24.0 m E

C. Sketch, and then calculate the components of the following vectors.

1. 30.0m, 45.00 N of E
2. 50.0 m, 23.00 N of W
3. 300.m, 22.00 E of N
4. 12.0 m, 60.00 S of E
5. 77.4 m/s2, 79.00 S of W

D. Graphically get the resultant vector.

1. A car goes 5 km east 3 km south, 2 km west and 1 km north. Find the resultant
displacement.
2. Find the resultant of the following two displacements: 2 m at 30 deg and 4 m at 120 deg. The
angles are taken relative to the x axis.
3. Use the graphical technique for adding vectors to find the total displacement of a person who
walks the following three paths (displacements) on a flat field. First, she walks 25.0 m in a
direction 49.0 degrees north of east. Then, she walks 23.0 m heading 15.0 degrees north of
east. Finally, she turns and walks 32.0 m in a direction 68.0 degrees south of east.

E. Determine the values of α and θ so that the forces shown in Fig. P-316 will be in equilibrium.

F. The 300-lb force and the 400-lb force shown in Fig. P-315 are to be held in equilibrium by a
third force F acting at an unknown angle θ with the horizontal. Determine the values of F
and θ.

G. Solve for t. What is the net force?he resultant vector using component method.

1. A laser beam is aimed 15.950 above the horizontal at a mirror 11, 648 m away. It
glances off the mirror and continues for an additional 8570 m at 11.44 0 above the
horizon until it hits its target. What is the resultant displacement of the beam to the
target?
2. Three forces act on a point: 3 N at 00 , 4 N at 900, and 5 N at 2170
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