Question

A person walks first at a constant speed of 4.90 m/s along a straight line from point A to point B and then back along the line from B to A at a constant speed of 2.90m/s.

(a) What is her average speed over the entire trip? (in m/s)

Answer 1

The person's average speed over the entire trip was 3.9 m/s.

Step-by-step explanation:

The average speed over the trip was:

s = (s₁ + s₂) / n = (4.9 m/s + 2.9 m/s) / 2 = 3.9 m/s

s: speed of the entire trip

s₁: speed in 1° section of the trip

s₂: speed in 2° section of the trip

n: number of sections

The important thing is the speed of the person walking but not the distance travelled during the trip.