A teacher tells his class that a train is moving at 40 miles per hour. Does this tell them the speed of the train, the velocity of the train, or both?

Question

A teacher tells his class that a train is moving at 40 miles per hour. Does this tell them the speed of the train, the velocity of the train, or both?

Answer 1

Speed of the train

Answer 2

The difference between speed and velocity lies in the fact that speed is a scalar quantity, and velocity is a vector quantity. Speed simply refers to how fast an object is moving, irrespective of its direction. In this case, it’s 40 miles per hour. On the other hand, velocity not only considers the speed but also the direction in which the object is moving. Since the directional aspect of the train's motion cannot be inferred from the provided information, the teacher had signaled the speed of the train, not its velocity. Thus, the information tells us only the speed of the train, not the velocity.

Question

A teacher tells his class that a train is moving at 40 miles per hour. Does this tell them the speed of the train, the velocity of the train, or both?

Answer

Answer

Explanation