In this first example of constant accelerated motion, we will simply consider a car that is initially traveling along a straight stretch of highway at 15 m/s. At t = 0, the car begins to accelerate at 20 m/s² in order to pass a truck. What is the velocity of the car after 0.5 seconds have elapsed?
REFLECTION: The velocity and acceleration are in the same direction, so the speed increases. An acceleration of 2.0 m/s² means that the velocity increases by 2.5 m/s every second, so the velocity increases by 10 m/s.
Practice Problem:
If the car maintains its constant acceleration, how much additional time does it take for the car to reach a velocity of 37.0 m/s?
Express your answer in seconds.