AP Physics 1 - Unit 1 Review - Kinematics - Exam Prep

This lecture provides a comprehensive overview of kinematics, the study of motion. It begins by addressing essential preliminary skills like unit conversions and the distinction between scalar and vector quantities, emphasizing the importance of vectors in describing motion with both magnitude and direction. The lecture then progresses to define key concepts such as displacement, speed, velocity (average and instantaneous), and acceleration, highlighting the relationships between them and how they are represented graphically. Understanding these fundamental definitions is crucial for the subsequent application of kinematic equations. The core of the lecture focuses on uniformly accelerated motion (UAM) and its application to freefall scenarios. It explains how to use the four UAM equations to solve problems involving constant acceleration, emphasizing the importance of correctly identifying variables and their signs. The lecture then transitions to two-dimensional motion, introducing the concept of vector components and how to resolve vectors into their x and y components using trigonometry. Finally, it covers projectile motion, explaining how to analyze the horizontal and vertical components separately, and relative motion, demonstrating how motion is perceived differently depending on the observer's frame of reference. By mastering these concepts, you'll be well-equipped to analyze and solve a wide range of kinematic problems.