Kinematics

"The factor most ignored in discussing interstellar flight is the kinetic energy that must be invested in the ship to make its tons of matter move at a substantial fraction of the speed of light"

Barney Oliver

Kinematics

What you have to know:

The derivatives of all known functions
(If not, check this lesson)
How to integrate
(If not, check this lesson)
You must be able to manipulate exponential expressions.
(If not, check this lesson)
You must be able to manipulate logarithmic expressions.
(If not, check this lesson)

Key Points

1. Watch the video:

2. Check out this presentation.

3. Read these notes.

Extra

Material and references:

Hodder Book SL(ISBN: 9781510462359):
21C

Key Points

You should be able to apply calculus to kinematics, linking displacement, velocity, acceleration and distance travelled. Velocity and acceleration are given by \( v = \frac{ds}{dt} \) and \( a = \frac{dv}{dt} = \frac{d^2s}{dt^2} \). The change in velocity from \( t = a \) to \( t = b \) is \[ \int_a^b a\,dt, \] the change in displacement from \( t = a \) to \( t = b \) is \[ \int_a^b v\,dt, \] and the distance travelled between \( t = a \) and \( t = b \) is \[ \int_a^b |v|\,dt. \]

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