In physics and engineering, metres per second (m/s) is often written with -1 following it in superscript. Why?

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What does the -1 mean?

See example:
http://www.mishkas.com/inc/img/ms.JPG

2007-02-22 04:47:36 · 3 answers · asked by pottolom 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics

It means the reciprocal of something.
For example, the reciprocal of s is 1/s.
Since s^-1 = 1/s,
m*s^-1 = m*1/s = m/s

2007-02-22 04:51:51 · answer #1 · answered by math freak 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋

It means dividing per second.
1 m/s = 1 m.s-Â¹

2007-02-22 12:52:51 · answer #2 · answered by Arthur B 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋

Inverse function

2007-02-22 13:25:03 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋