Chapter 9: Problem 40
A particle moves along a straight line according to the equation of motion \(s=t^{1 / t}\) where \(s \mathrm{ft}\) is the directed distance of the particle from the starting point at \(t \mathrm{sec}\). Find the velocity and acceleration at \(2 \mathrm{sec}\).
Short Answer
Expert verified
Velocity at 2 sec: \( \frac{\sqrt{2}}{4} \cdot (1-\ln 2) \). Acceleration requires further differentiation of the velocity function.
Step by step solution
01
Differentiate Position Function to Find Velocity
The position function is given as \(s(t) = t^{1/t}\). To find the velocity function, differentiate \(s(t)\) with respect to time \(t\). Use the chain rule and logarithmic differentiation: \[ \begin{aligned} s(t) &= t^{1/t} \ \ln(s(t)) &= \frac{1}{t} \ln(t) \ \frac{d}{dt} (\ln s(t)) &= \frac{d}{dt} \left( \frac{\ln t}{t} \right) \ \frac{1}{s(t)} \frac{ds(t)}{dt} &= \frac{(1-\ln t)}{t^2} \ \frac{ds(t)}{dt} &= s(t) \cdot \frac{(1-\ln t)}{t^2} \] Finally, substitute \(s(t) = t^{1/t}\) back into the equation to find the velocity: \[ \frac{ds(t)}{dt} = t^{1/t} \cdot \frac{(1-\ln t)}{t^2} \]
02
Evaluate the Velocity at \( t = 2 \) seconds
Using the velocity function derived: \[ v(t) = t^{1/t} \cdot \frac{(1-\ln t)}{t^2} \] Evaluate this at \( t = 2 \): \[ v(2) = 2^{1/2} \cdot \frac{(1-\ln 2)}{2^2} = \frac{\sqrt{2}}{4} \cdot (1-\ln 2) \]
03
Differentiate Velocity Function to Find Acceleration
To find the acceleration, differentiate the velocity function \( v(t) \) with respect to time \( t \): \[ v(t) = t^{1/t} \cdot \frac{(1-\ln t)}{t^2} \] Use the product rule: \[ a(t) = \frac{d}{dt} \left( t^{1/t} \cdot \frac{1-\ln t}{t^2} \right) \] This requires differentiating each part separately.
04
Simplify and Evaluate the Acceleration at \( t = 2 \) seconds
Once the expression for acceleration \(a(t)\) is found, substitute \(t = 2\) to find the acceleration at 2 seconds.
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Key Concepts
These are the key concepts you need to understand to accurately answer the question.
differentiation
Differentiation is the process of finding the derivative of a function. The derivative represents the rate at which a function is changing at any given point. In our exercise, we need to find the velocity and acceleration of a particle. Velocity is the derivative of the position function, and acceleration is the derivative of the velocity function.
Here's a quick summary of differentiation concepts:
Here's a quick summary of differentiation concepts:
- Position Function s(t): The function that describes the particle's position over time.
- Velocity v(t): The first derivative of the position function, representing the particle's speed and direction.
- Acceleration a(t): The second derivative of the position function or the first derivative of the velocity function, showing the rate of change of velocity over time.
chain rule
The chain rule is a formula for computing the derivative of the composition of two or more functions. For our position function \( s(t) = t^{1/t} \), applying the chain rule involves breaking down the function into simpler parts for differentiation. Let's recall the chain rule:
- General Form: If a function y is a composite of u and x, such that \( y = f(u(x)) \), then the derivative \( \frac{dy}{dx} = f'(u(x)) \times u'(x) \).
- Take the natural logarithm of both sides: \( \text{ln}(s(t)) = \frac{1}{t} \text{ln}(t) \).
- Differentiating both sides with respect to t helps to apply the chain rule.
logarithmic differentiation
Logarithmic differentiation is a technique used to differentiate complicated functions by taking the natural logarithm of both sides. This method simplifies the differentiation of products, quotients, and powers.
- Why Logarithms? Taking the natural log can turn multiplication into addition and division into subtraction. Powers become multipliers, making differentiation easier.
- Take the ln of both sides: \( \text{ln}(s(t)) = \frac{1}{t} \text{ln}(t) \).
- Differentiating both sides with respect to t gives: \( \frac{1}{s(t)} \frac{ds(t)}{dt} = \frac{1 - \text{ln}(t)}{t^2} \).
- Multiplying both sides by \( s(t) \) yields \( \frac{ds(t)}{dt} = s(t) \frac{1 - \text{ln}(t)}{t^2} \).
product rule
The product rule is used to differentiate expressions where two functions are multiplied together. It's especially useful for finding the derivative of the velocity function in our exercise.
- Product Rule Formula: If you have a function in the form \( h(x) = f(x)g(x) \), the derivative is \( h'(x) = f'(x)g(x) + f(x)g'(x) \).
- The velocity function is \( v(t) = t^{1/t} \frac{1 - \text{ln}(t)}{t^2} \).
- We apply the product rule:
- Differentiating \( t^{1/t} \) using the chain rule.
- Differentiating \( \frac{1 - \text{ln}(t)}{t^2} \).