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Acceleration

If a box is accelerating upwards at 2ms^-1 then is it decelerating downwards at 2ms^-1? do these two statements mean the same thing?


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Acceleration is a vector. You state the acceleration (taken to be positive) is upwards. Deceleration (taken to be negative) downwards (opposite of up and so is also taken negative). -1x-1=1 and so the direction is the same as accelerating upwards, than if you deccelerated in the opposite direction
Original post by Protoxylic
Acceleration is a vector. You state the acceleration (taken to be positive) is upwards. Deceleration (taken to be negative) downwards (opposite of up and so is also taken negative). -1x-1=1 and so the direction is the same as accelerating upwards, than if you deccelerated in the opposite direction


So it is the same?


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Original post by anoymous1111
So it is the same?


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Yes because acceleration can take values from negative infinity to infinity (although infinite acceleration is impossible). So if you look at it that way, if you're decelerating downwards, that is the same as increasing the acceleration in the upward direction

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