Can someone explain to me what?

Question

m/s^2 means? I mean like what does it mean besides acceleration? What does the squared essentially mean?

I mean, in like everyday language to someone who does not understand the mathematical meaning

Answer 1

Accleration is a measure of the change of speed of an object per unit time. Speed is a measure of an object's motion per unit time. Reducing the equation for Acceleration then becomes Distance per time by time or time squared.

The squared means that for every second of time , the speed increases by that many meters per second. Saying it another way, acceleration is a measure of change of distance per second per second.

The best way to think about it is to think about gravity. Freefall objects accelerate at 9.2 meters per second per second. Dropping a ball from a tall roof, in the first second, the ball goes from zero meters per second to 9.2 meters per second. In the second second, the ball continues to accelerate ; it is now falling at a speed of 18.4 meters per second. In the third second , the ball is still falling, still accelerating, and is now moving at a rate of 27.6 meters per second .... etc.... every second that goes by, the ball will fall quicker, adding another 9.2 meters per second.... or gaining 9.2 meters per second per second.

Does this help you understand the math?

Answer 2

That means that the speed of a falling object increases by 9.8 m/s each and every second

For Example::::::
Say 2 stones are released from rest at the top of a 5000 m hill, one 10 seconds after another. During their flight, would the difference between their velocities increase, decrease, or stay the same? Also, would the first stone hit the ground exactly 10 seconds before the second one?

My prediction is that the velocities will stay the same, and the first stone will hit the ground 10 seconds before the 2nd one, since acceleration is constant and V initial is 0.

Answer 3

It is meters per second per second. Think of it like this. If you are moving along at a constant speed of 10 meters per second, that is simply 10 m/s. However if you *change* how fast you move, that change is the acceleration, or m/s^2. So 10 m/s^2 means every second you are moving 10 m/s faster than you were the second before.

Hope that helps some...

Answer 4

m / s^2 is like this: first dimension you have meters...how far something is. then you have m/s, which measures how long it takes it to go that distance (velocity). when you have m/s^2, or meters per second per second, it is the measure of the change in the velocity (m/s), or how much the velocity changes every second. just imagine that the speed is on top of the fraction and the last second is on the bottom. it is the measure of the change in velocity per second

Answer 5

Hi. It means that for every second that passes, the speed (in meters per second) goes up by, say, 10 meters per second.

Answer 6

I think the best way to explain what the s^2 means is to relate it to how we, as humans EXPERIENCE it. It makes the feeling of the car seat pushing on your back as you drive off from a parking bay. It is what pushes you into the seat belt when you slam the brakes on. I hope this helps you to relate it to everyday life.

Answer 7

it means times itself twice. like squared usually means.

Answer 8

meters per second per second - the rate of change of velocity