The speed and average speed of the vehicle can be equal if the vehicle moves with uniform speed or constant speed.

Short Answer

Expert verified
If so, under what conditions? Answer: Yes, the speed and average speed of a vehicle can be equal if the vehicle is moving at a uniform or constant speed. This is because, under this condition, the vehicle covers equal distances in equal intervals of time, making their formulas and values for speed and average speed the same.

Step by step solution

01

Define speed and average speed

Speed is a measure of how fast an object is moving and is defined as the distance traveled per unit of time. Mathematically, the speed can be calculated as follows: Speed = \(\frac{distance}{time}\) Average speed, on the other hand, is the total distance traveled divided by the total time taken. Average speed can be calculated using the formula: Average Speed = \(\frac{total\:distance\:traveled}{total\:time\:taken}\)
02

Explain uniform or constant speed

A vehicle is said to have a uniform or constant speed when it covers equal distances in equal intervals of time. In this case, its speed does not change throughout the entire journey.
03

Determine when speed and average speed can be equal

We want to find out when the speed and average speed of a vehicle can be equal. In other words, when: Speed = Average Speed For a vehicle moving at a constant speed, the distance traveled is the same throughout the entire journey. Therefore, the total distance traveled is equal to the distance traveled in each interval of time. This means that: Total Distance Traveled = Distance Now, we substitute the total distance traveled into the formula for average speed: Average Speed = \(\frac{total\:distance\:traveled}{total\:time\:taken}\) = \(\frac{distance}{time}\) Since the formulas for speed and average speed are the same in this scenario, we can deduce that: Speed = Average Speed
04

Conclusion

The speed and average speed of a vehicle can be equal when the vehicle is moving at a uniform or constant speed, as they both involve covering equal distances in equal intervals of time. In such a scenario, the formulas for speed and average speed are the same, and therefore, their values will also be equal.

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Key Concepts

These are the key concepts you need to understand to accurately answer the question.

Understanding Speed
Speed is a fundamental concept in physics that describes how quickly something is moving. It is calculated by measuring the distance traveled over a certain period of time. The formula for speed is quite straightforward:

Speed = \(\frac{distance}{time}\)
To put it into context, if you walk 100 meters in 20 seconds, your speed is 5 meters per second. Speed is normally measured in units like meters per second (m/s), kilometers per hour (km/h), or miles per hour (mph).

Understanding speed is essential for solving various problems in science and daily life, such as determining how long it will take to travel from one place to another. It's also crucial for enforcing speed limits on roads to ensure safety.
What is Uniform Speed?
Uniform speed, also known as constant speed, is when an object covers equal distances in equal intervals of time, without changing its speed. Think of a car on cruise control traveling at a steady 60 km/h, it maintains this speed for the entire journey, regardless of whether it travels for 1 hour or 2 hours.

The expression uniform speed = \(\frac{distance}{time}\) remains consistent throughout the entire motion. This concept is the backbone of understanding motion in a controlled environment, where external factors like traffic or terrain don't affect the speed of the vehicle.

For students learning about uniform speed, it's important to note that this type of motion is idealized; in real life, external forces like friction, air resistance, and gradients often cause slight variations in an object's speed.
Constant Speed and Average Speed Equivalence
When we say a vehicle has a constant speed, it means that its speed does not vary throughout the journey. The speed is the same at every moment of the trip. Now, average speed is determined by dividing the total distance traveled by the total time taken, which can be expressed as:

Average Speed = \(\frac{total\:distance\:traveled}{total\:time\:taken}\)

If a vehicle moves with uniform or constant speed, it implies that the speed at each moment is the same as the average speed. In such cases, unlike most real-world driving scenarios which include stops, accelerations, and decelerations, no distinction is made between the instantaneous speed and the average speed over a trip because they are equal. This concept is crucial for understanding theoretical physics problems and ideal motion concepts.

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