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M2( Edexcel): quick question on strangely (?) worded question

Here is the question with the part I am interested in highlighted:
ambiguous.PNG
Now, what does "in the third second of motion " mean?
It means 3 seconds after it started moving...
I presume you're talking about the question from June 2016 (I can't see the attachment if you have added one) :
The question wants you to find the distance traveled between t=2 and t=3. You can do this by integrating v (velocity, to get x, displacement) with t=2,3 as your boundaries. Also, you could use suvat and find the difference.
Original post by Radioactivedecay
It means 3 seconds after it started moving...

Yeah, I got that :biggrin:
But surely one can only travel a certain distance in an interval of time?! Wouldn't the distance travelled in the third second be 0, as it is a point in time and not an interval?
Original post by FryOfTheMann
I presume you're talking about the question from June 2016 (I can't see the attachment if you have added one) :
The question wants you to find the distance traveled between t=2 and t=3. You can do this by integrating v (velocity, to get x, displacement) with t=2,3 as your boundaries. Also, you could use suvat and find the difference.

Thanks! I hope you can view my attachment by now.
How do you know that one is supposed to find the distance traveled between t=2 and t=3? I don't see how one could possibly determine that just by reading the question...?! Am I missing some edexcel lore here?
(edited 5 years ago)
Original post by bluenotewitt
Yeah, I got that :biggrin:
But surely one can only travel a certain distance in an interval of time?! Wouldn't the distance travelled in the third second be 0, as it is a point in time and not an interval?


The third second is between 2 and 3
Original post by bluenotewitt
Yeah, I got that :biggrin:
But surely one can only travel a certain distance in an interval of time?! Wouldn't the distance travelled in the third second be 0, as it is a point in time and not an interval?


A is an interval not a point. So 0 to 1 is the first second, 1 to 2 is the second and 2 to 3 is the third second. Hence the q is asking for the integral from 2 to 3
Original post by bluenotewitt
Thanks! I hope you can view my attachment by now.
How do you know that one is supposed to find the distance traveled between t=2 and t=3? I don't see how one could possibly determine that just by reading the question...? Am I missing some edexcel lore here?


Yeah, I can see it now - thanks. Likely a problem on my end, to be honest. I admit the question is a bit confusing, I originally thought it just meant how far it had traveled in the first three seconds but now I guess you just have to infer that it is the very start of the 3rd second to the very end (hence 2 and 3 as the boundaries). Might be something to keep in mind for the exam.
Lol, sorry just got it :biggrin:...


Did you not see post #7, which answers your question? A second is not a point in time, but an interval, so all time between t=0 and t=1 falls within the 1st second, time between t=1 and t=2 falls within the 2nd second, time between t=2 and t=3 falls within the 3rd second, etc.
Original post by FryOfTheMann
Yeah, I can see it now - thanks. Likely a problem on my end, to be honest. I admit the question is a bit confusing, I originally thought it just meant how far it had traveled in the first three seconds but now I guess you just have to infer that it is the very start of the 3rd second to the very end (hence 2 and 3 as the boundaries). Might be something to keep in mind for the exam.

Thanks! Literally just understood what they meant...
Why not just ask interesting questions and not boring catch out questions, edexcel ? :biggrin:
Original post by bluenotewitt
Why not just ask interesting questions and not boring catch out questions, edexcel ? :biggrin:


This is an entirely standard and trivial piece of terminology and I have never previously come across a student who was confused by it. You seem to keep thinking that it was supposed to catch you out when the fact is that it wasn't: rather, you simply were confused about what the English word "second" means.
Original post by Prasiortle
This is an entirely standard and trivial piece of terminology and I have never previously come across a student who was confused by it. You seem to keep thinking that it was supposed to catch you out when the fact is that it wasn't: rather, you simply were confused about what the English word "second" means.

:biggrin: maybe... I was just joking around a bit tbh.
never seen a student defend edexcel :biggrin:

Seriously, though I doubt I am the only one who finds this question a bit confusing (at first). Also reading a question at home on ones computer with a cup of tea is not that same as sitting in an exam hall under adrenalin... I mean I've literally added one digit numbers up wrong in some of my gcse exams :smile:.
Original post by bluenotewitt
:biggrin: maybe... I was just joking around a bit tbh.
never seen a student defend edexcel :biggrin:

Seriously, though I doubt I am the only one who finds this question a bit confusing (at first). Also reading a question at home on ones computer with a cup of tea is not that same as sitting in an exam hall under adrenalin... I mean I've literally added one digit numbers up wrong in some of my gcse exams :smile:.


I'm not a student, and back when I was, I never did an Edexcel mathematics exam.

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