There was a maths (or maybe science) question in school that has always stuck with me, because of how much I didn’t understand the question.
“A car hits a brick wall at 100 km, what speed is doing when it hits the wall?” Was the first part of the question.
My answer to that was 0, because when you hit the wall the speed it’s doing is 0. You have stopped moving.
No, it was 100.
I now realise that this question was not one of speed, but of velocity or momentum. And that it’s a physics question, not a maths question.
The question should have been how much *energy* or momentum is the car carrying when it hits the brick wall. #maths #science #schooling
“A car hits a brick wall at 100 km, what speed is doing when it hits the wall?” Was the first part of the question.
My answer to that was 0, because when you hit the wall the speed it’s doing is 0. You have stopped moving.
No, it was 100.
I now realise that this question was not one of speed, but of velocity or momentum. And that it’s a physics question, not a maths question.
The question should have been how much *energy* or momentum is the car carrying when it hits the brick wall. #maths #science #schooling
