Question

An object moves $18\,m$ in the first $3\,s,22\,m$ in the next $3\,s$ and $14\,m$ in the last $3\,s$. What is the average speed?

Answer 1

Hint: In order to answer this question, to calculate the average speed, we will first explain the average speed and its formula, and then we will add all the given distances as well as the time. Finally, we will divide the sum of all distances by the sum of all time taken.

Formula-used:
$\text{Avg. speed} = \dfrac{\text{Total distance covered}}{\text{Total time taken}} $

Complete step by step answer:
The average speed of a moving item over a certain distance is referred to as average speed in physics. The distance travelled by any given object has a relationship with average speed. It's referred to as a scalar quantity.

As we know, average speed is equal to the total distance divided by the total time taken: So, the distances are $18m,22m\,and\,14m$ in time $3s,3s\,and\,3s$respectively.
$\text{Avg. speed} = \dfrac{{18m + 22m + 14m}}{{3s + 3s + 3s}} \\
\Rightarrow \text{Avg. speed}= \dfrac{{54\,m}}{{9\,s}} \\
\therefore \text{Avg. speed}= 6\,m\,{s^{ - 1}} \\ $
Hence, the required average speed is $6\,m\,{s^{ - 1}}$.

Additional Information: In two words, average speed combines two concepts: average, which refers to a mean obtained from a large number of unique data points, and speed, which refers to a change in position. If we can time the motion and measure the distance, we can calculate the average speed for any sort of motion.

Note:The fundamental distinction between average speed and average velocity is that average speed is calculated by dividing the total distance travelled by the time taken, whereas average velocity is determined by dividing the displacement by the time spent.