Vectors in Two Dimensions:
Vectors give you a way to move around the Cartesian plane by moving a certain distance in a
particular direction, by considering the direction to be split into horizontal and vertical parts. E.g., if
you walk 40𝑚𝑚 east, then 30𝑚𝑚 north, how far are you from your starting point, and in what
direction?
This concept has many applications in Physics and is expanded to three dimensions in the
Mathematics Extension 2 course. Vectors are used in kinematics and dynamics (motion),
hydrodynamics (motion of a fluid), heat flow in solids, electromagnetism and many other real-life
applications.
Scalar quantities and vector quantities:
A scalar quantity is one that is completely specified by its magnitude (size) and, if appropriate, its
unit of measurement. Examples of scalar quantities include mass, length, speed, temperature and
time. Note that temperature is a scalar quantity, even though it may have a negative value
(depending on the measurement scale being used). A negative temperature value indicates its
relative magnitude and does not imply that temperature is oriented in any direction.
A vector quantity is one that is completely described by its magnitude and direction (and, if
appropriate, its unit of measurement). Examples of vector quantities include:
• Displacement (change in position of an object)
• Velocity (time rate of change of displacement or position)
• Acceleration (time rate of change of velocity)
• Force (a push or pull that can affect the motion of an object)
• Weight (the gravitational force acting on an object – this is not the same as the mass of an
object, which is scalar)
• Momentum (the product of an object’s mass and velocity)
Consider the vector quantity of displacement. In order to fully specify the displacement of an object,
it is necessary to know how far it is from the starting point (magnitude) and the direction in which it
has moved.
1) Sarah walks from point 𝑂𝑂 to point 𝐶𝐶, via points 𝐴𝐴 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝐵𝐵.
a) What distance has she walked?
b) What is her position relative to her starting point?
Vectors and vector notation
A vector quantity can be represented by a directed straight-
line segment with an arrowhead (on the line segment)
indicating its direction and the length of the line indicating
its magnitude. The beginning of the vector is called its tail
and the end is called its head. The vector with a tail at point
A and head at point B is denoted 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴. Alternatively, it is also
common to use a bold lower-case letter to denote a vector,
e.g., a or an italic lower case letter with a tilde underneath
e.g. 𝑎𝑎̰ .
You will find it easier to use 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 or 𝑎𝑎̰ in handwritten text.
1
Magnitude of a vector
The magnitude of a vector is a measure of its size or length and is a scalar quantity.
The magnitude of vector 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 is written �𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴�, the magnitude of vector 𝑎𝑎� is written |𝑎𝑎̰ |, and the
magnitude of vector a is written |𝒂𝒂|.
The diagram at right shows a vector 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 of
magnitude 10 km in a direction 𝑁𝑁480 𝐸𝐸
Vector algebra
Equality of vectors
Two vectors are equal if and only if they have the same magnitude and the same direction,
regardless of their positions.
In the examples below, 𝑎𝑎̰ = 𝑏𝑏̰ = 𝑐𝑐̰
Negative of a vector
The negative of vector 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 = 𝑎𝑎̰ is the vector −𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 = 𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵 = −𝑎𝑎̰
−𝑎𝑎̰ has the same magnitude as 𝑎𝑎̰ but with opposite direction. 𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵 is the vector drawn from 𝐵𝐵 𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡 𝐴𝐴,
whereas 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 is the vector drawn from 𝐴𝐴 𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡 𝐵𝐵. Therefore, 𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵 = −𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 and the direction is reversed.
The zero vector
The zero vector, denoted 0̰ , is a vector of zero magnitude. Its direction cannot be defined. Adding a
vector to its negative will produce the zero vector.
𝑎𝑎̰ + (−𝑎𝑎̰ ) = 0
Scalar multiplication of vectors
Multiplying a vector by a scalar (a number) where 𝑘𝑘 ∈ 𝑅𝑅, the set of real numbers, 𝑘𝑘 ≠ 0, results in a
vector with 𝑘𝑘 times the magnitude and parallel to the original vector.
• If 𝑘𝑘 > 0, then 𝑘𝑘𝑎𝑎̰ has the same
direction as 𝑎𝑎̰ , but has 𝑘𝑘 times the
magnitude.
• If 𝑘𝑘 = 0, then 𝑘𝑘𝑎𝑎̰ = 0̰
2
• If 𝑘𝑘 < 0, then 𝑘𝑘𝑎𝑎̰ is in the opposite
direction to 𝑎𝑎̰ and has 𝑘𝑘 times the
magnitude
Addition of vectors
The triangle rule for the addition of vectors
To add two vectors 𝑎𝑎̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑏𝑏̰ , the vectors are placed with the head of 𝑎𝑎̰ and the tail of 𝑏𝑏̰ . The
resultant vector or vector sum is a vector joining the tail of 𝑎𝑎̰ to the head of 𝑏𝑏̰ . This vector addition
forms a triangle, hence the triangle rule for vector addition, sometimes called head to tail rule
Also, for ∆𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴, 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 + 𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵 = 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜 𝑎𝑎̰ + 𝑏𝑏̰ = 𝑐𝑐̰
The parallelogram rule for the addition of vectors
If two vectors to be added have the same initial point, they can be added by drawing a parallelogram
rather than moving one vector to the head of the other vector. The diagonal of the parallelogram,
drawn from the initial point to the final point, represents the vector sum. This works because adding
𝑏𝑏̰ 𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡 𝑎𝑎̰ is the same as adding 𝑎𝑎̰ 𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡 𝑏𝑏̰ .
The diagram shows that 𝑎𝑎̰ + 𝑏𝑏̰ = 𝑏𝑏̰ + 𝑎𝑎̰ = 𝑐𝑐̰
and this rule is known as the parallelogram rule
for addition of vectors. The parallelogram rule
for addition of vectors illustrates that vector
addition is commutative. An example of
commutative is 𝑎𝑎 × 𝑏𝑏 = 𝑏𝑏 × 𝑎𝑎
3
For parallelogram 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂, you can also write
���� ���� = ����
𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 + 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 ���� + ����
𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 and 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 𝐶𝐶𝐶𝐶 = ����
𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂
2) Draw diagrams to show:
a) (𝑎𝑎̰ + 𝑏𝑏̰ ) + 𝑐𝑐̰ b) 𝑎𝑎̰ + (𝑏𝑏̰ + 𝑐𝑐̰ )
Vector addition is also associative. If three vectors 𝑎𝑎̰ , 𝑏𝑏̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑐𝑐̰ are added, then
𝑎𝑎̰ + (𝑏𝑏̰ + 𝑐𝑐̰ ) = (𝑎𝑎̰ + 𝑏𝑏̰ ) + 𝑐𝑐̰ = 𝑎𝑎̰ + 𝑏𝑏̰ + 𝑐𝑐̰ . This method can be extended to any number of vectors
(sometimes called the polygon rule for vector addition).
3) Draw a diagram to show 𝑎𝑎̰ + 𝑏𝑏̰ + 𝑐𝑐̰ + 𝑑𝑑̰
Subtraction of vectors
Subtraction of a vector is defined as addition of its negative. That is, to subtract 𝑏𝑏̰ from 𝑎𝑎̰ , add
−𝑏𝑏̰ 𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡 𝑎𝑎̰ , 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑎̰ − 𝑏𝑏̰ = 𝑎𝑎̰ + (−𝑏𝑏̰ ).
If a vector is subtracted from itself, the result is the zero vector: 𝑎𝑎̰ − 𝑎𝑎̰ = 0̰
4) Given the three vectors 𝑎𝑎̰ , 𝑏𝑏,̰ 𝑐𝑐̰ as shown,
construct the following:
a) 𝑎𝑎̰ + 𝑏𝑏̰
b) 𝑐𝑐̰ + 𝑎𝑎̰
c) 𝑏𝑏̰ − 𝑐𝑐̰
5) 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 is a parallelogram. If 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 = 𝑎𝑎̰ and
𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵 = 𝑏𝑏̰ , express each of the following vectors
in terms of 𝑎𝑎̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑏𝑏̰ .
a) 𝐷𝐷𝐷𝐷 b) 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 c) 𝐵𝐵𝐵𝐵
4
Questions
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
5
9)
10)
11)
12)
6
Vectors in two dimensions:
Position vectors on the cartesian plane
A position vector is a vector drawn with its tail at 𝑂𝑂, the origin.
Position vectors are used to represent points by a distance and a
direction rather than two numbers (the coordinates). You can
position vectors on the Cartesian plane and represent them with
ordered pairs as well as a length and a direction.
The position vector of any point 𝑃𝑃(𝑥𝑥, 𝑦𝑦) relative to a fixed origin
𝑂𝑂 on the Cartesian plane is uniquely by the vector 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂����, as shown
���� represents the position
in the diagram. That is, the vector 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂
vector of point 𝑃𝑃(𝑥𝑥, 𝑦𝑦) relative to 𝑂𝑂.
For example, the diagram at right shows the position vector of
����, where 𝐴𝐴
point 𝐴𝐴(3,2) 𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟 𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡 𝑂𝑂. The position vector is 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂
has coordinates (3,2).
6) Draw the following position vectors on the Cartesian plane.
����, where 𝐴𝐴 𝑖𝑖𝑖𝑖 (−3,2)
a) 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 b) 𝑎𝑎̰ , the position vector of (1, −3)
A position vector can be represented by a coordinate pair (𝑎𝑎, 𝑏𝑏). This represents the vector that is
𝑎𝑎 𝑢𝑢𝑢𝑢𝑢𝑢𝑢𝑢𝑢𝑢 𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓 𝑂𝑂 in the positive 𝑥𝑥 direction, and 𝑏𝑏 units from 𝑂𝑂 in the positive 𝑦𝑦 direction. This can be
represented as a column vector �𝑎𝑎𝑏𝑏�, [𝑎𝑎𝑏𝑏] or by the coordinates (𝑎𝑎, 𝑏𝑏). Any vector that is equivalent to
a translation of 𝑎𝑎 units in the positive 𝑥𝑥 direction and 𝑏𝑏 units in the positive 𝑦𝑦 direction can be
represented in this way.
���� can be represented by the column vector
If 𝐴𝐴 has coordinates (3,2), then the position vector 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂
3 3
���� = � �
� � : 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂
2 2
7
The magnitude of a position vector
���� = �𝑎𝑎� can be calculated using pythagoras’s theorem
The magnitude of a position vector 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 𝑏𝑏
����
|𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂| = √𝑎𝑎 + 𝑏𝑏 .
2 2
𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 = �32� 𝑖𝑖𝑖𝑖 |𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂
For example, the magnitude of the position vector ���� ����| = √32 + 22 = √13 units.
7) Draw the following position vectors on the Cartesian plane.
a) 𝑎𝑎̰ , the position vector of �12�. 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 = �−43� .
b) ����
Equal vectors
Equal vectors do not have to start at the same point. To be
equal, the 𝑦𝑦 only need to have the same magnitude and
direction.
Although the position vector of the point 𝐴𝐴(3,1) starts at the
origin, the coordinate pair (3,1) can be used to represent
any vector whose head is thee units across and one unit up
from its tail. However, none of the other vectors can be
called position vectors. Vectors will also be equal if and only
if they are expressed using the same coordinates. For
example, the vector [𝑎𝑎𝑏𝑏] will only be equal to the vector [𝑑𝑑𝑐𝑐 ] if
𝑎𝑎 = 𝑏𝑏 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑐𝑐 = 𝑑𝑑.
8) Given 𝑑𝑑̰ = (2,5), specify an ordered pair for each of the following.
a) 2𝑑𝑑̰ b) −𝑑𝑑̰
4
9) Given 𝑒𝑒̰ = � −6 �, specify a column vector for each of the following.
1
a) 𝑒𝑒̰ b) −3𝑒𝑒̰
2
8
Questions
1)
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3)
4)
5)
9
6)
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10)
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Vectors in component form:
A unit vector is a vector with a magnitude of one unit. To obtain a unit vector from a given vector,
divide that vector by its own magnitude.
If vector 𝑎𝑎̰ has a magnitude of |𝑎𝑎̰ |, then a unit vector in the direction of 𝑎𝑎̰ , denoted by a̰�, can be
𝑎𝑎̰
found by dividing vector 𝑎𝑎̰ by its own magnitude |𝑎𝑎̰ |. That is a̰� = |𝑎𝑎̰ |
𝑎𝑎̰
The unit vector in the direction of 𝑎𝑎̰ is denoted by 𝑎𝑎̰�, 𝑤𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑒𝑒𝑒𝑒𝑒 𝑎𝑎̰� = |𝑎𝑎̰ | and |𝑎𝑎̰�| = 1
Recall that a vector can be represented as an ordered pair
(𝑥𝑥, 𝑦𝑦) 𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑎𝑎 𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐 𝑣𝑣𝑣𝑣𝑣𝑣𝑣𝑣𝑣𝑣𝑣𝑣 �𝑦𝑦𝑥𝑥 � , where the first value represents
the distance parallel to the 𝑥𝑥 − 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 and the second value the
distance parallel to the 𝑦𝑦 − 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎. This information can also be
defined using the vectors 𝚤𝚤̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝚥𝚥̰, where 𝚤𝚤̰ is the vector of magnitude
one unit in the positive 𝑥𝑥 − 𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑 and 𝚥𝚥̰ is a vector of one unit
magnitude in the positive 𝑦𝑦 − 𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑. The vectors 𝚤𝚤̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝚥𝚥̰ are unit
vectors
For example, the vector 𝑎𝑎̰ defined by the coordinates (2,5) or the column vector �25� can be written
as 𝑎𝑎̰ = 2𝚤𝚤̰ + 5𝚥𝚥̰.
The form 𝑎𝑎̰ = 𝑥𝑥𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦𝚥𝚥̰ is called component form or 𝚤𝚤̰ , 𝚥𝚥̰
form of a vector. The vector 𝑎𝑎̰ may also be represented in
a column vector form as �𝑦𝑦𝑥𝑥 �.
10) Express the vector 𝑎𝑎̰ in component form.
When finding the components of a vector, start at the tail end. It does not matter whether you first
move parallel to the 𝑥𝑥 − 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 (to find the 𝚤𝚤̰ component) or parallel to the 𝑦𝑦 − 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 (to find the 𝚥𝚥̰
component).
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Magnitude of a vector in component form
To find the magnitude in component form you can use Pythagoras
theorem, as the components form a right angled triangle. For
example,
if 𝑎𝑎̰ = 5𝚤𝚤̰ − 2𝚥𝚥̰:
|𝑎𝑎̰ | = �52 + (−2)2 = √29
When finding the magnitude of a vector, use only the positive
square root value.
Resolving vectors into component form
If a vector 𝑎𝑎̰ of magnitude |𝑎𝑎̰ | makes an angle 𝜗𝜗 with the
positive
𝑥𝑥 − 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎, then:
𝑎𝑎̰ = |𝑎𝑎̰ |𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝚤𝚤̰ + |𝑎𝑎̰ |𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝚥𝚥̰
The horizontal component of the vector 𝑎𝑎̰ 𝑖𝑖𝑖𝑖 |𝑎𝑎̰ |𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝚤𝚤̰ and the
vertical component is |𝑎𝑎̰ |𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝚥𝚥̰.
The process of specifying a vector of known magnitude and
direction in component form is called resolving the vector.
11) Resolve the vector 𝑎𝑎̰ into component form 𝑎𝑎̰ = 𝑥𝑥𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦𝚥𝚥̰, given 𝑎𝑎̰ has a magnitude of 6 units and
has direction of 500 to the positive 𝑥𝑥 − 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎. Give answers correct to 2 [Link].
Addition and subtraction of vectors in component form
Addition and subtraction of vectors can be done by adding or subtracting the 𝚤𝚤̰ components and the
𝚥𝚥̰ components.
For 𝑎𝑎̰ = 𝑥𝑥1 𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦1 𝚥𝚥̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑏𝑏̰ = 𝑥𝑥2 𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦2 𝚥𝚥̰ then:
𝑎𝑎̰ + 𝑏𝑏̰ = �𝑥𝑥1 𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦1 𝚥𝚥̰� + �𝑥𝑥2 𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦2 𝚥𝚥̰�
= 𝑥𝑥1 𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑥𝑥2 𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦1 𝚥𝚥̰̃ + 𝑦𝑦2 𝚥𝚥̰
= (𝑥𝑥1 + 𝑥𝑥2 ) 𝚤𝚤̰ + (𝑦𝑦1 + 𝑦𝑦2 )𝚥𝚥̰
Similarly,
𝑎𝑎̰ − 𝑏𝑏̰ = �𝑥𝑥1 𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦1 𝚥𝚥̰� − �𝑥𝑥2 𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦2 𝚥𝚥̰�
= (𝑥𝑥1 − 𝑥𝑥2 )𝚤𝚤̰ + (𝑦𝑦1 − 𝑦𝑦2 )𝚥𝚥̰
12
For 𝑎𝑎̰ = 𝑥𝑥1 𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦1 𝚥𝚥̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑏𝑏̰ = 𝑥𝑥2 𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦2 𝚥𝚥̰:
𝑎𝑎̰ + 𝑏𝑏̰ = (𝑥𝑥1 + 𝑥𝑥2 ) 𝚤𝚤̰ + (𝑦𝑦1 + 𝑦𝑦2 )𝚥𝚥̰
𝑎𝑎̰ − 𝑏𝑏̰ = (𝑥𝑥1 − 𝑥𝑥2 )𝚤𝚤̰ + (𝑦𝑦1 − 𝑦𝑦2 )𝚥𝚥̰
In column vector notation, this can be written as:
𝑥𝑥1 𝑥𝑥2 𝑥𝑥1 + 𝑥𝑥2 𝑥𝑥1 𝑥𝑥2 𝑥𝑥1 − 𝑥𝑥2
� �+� �=� � 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 � � − � � = � �
𝑦𝑦1 𝑦𝑦2 𝑦𝑦1 + 𝑦𝑦2 𝑦𝑦1 𝑦𝑦2 𝑦𝑦1 − 𝑦𝑦2
respectively
Scalar multiplication of vectors in component form
𝑘𝑘𝑎𝑎̰ = 𝑘𝑘(𝑥𝑥𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦𝚥𝚥̰)
= 𝑘𝑘𝑘𝑘𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑘𝑘𝑘𝑘𝚥𝚥̰
In column vector notation, this can be written as
𝑥𝑥 𝑘𝑘𝑘𝑘
𝑘𝑘 � � = � �
𝑦𝑦 𝑘𝑘𝑘𝑘
If 𝒂𝒂̰ = 𝒙𝒙𝒊𝒊̰ + 𝒚𝒚𝒋𝒋̰ then 𝒌𝒌𝒂𝒂̰ = 𝒌𝒌𝒌𝒌𝒊𝒊̰ + 𝒌𝒌𝒌𝒌𝒋𝒋̰
12) Given 𝑎𝑎̰ = 𝚤𝚤̰ − 5𝚥𝚥̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑏𝑏̰ = −3𝚤𝚤̰ + 2𝚥𝚥̰, find a) 𝑎𝑎̰ + 𝑏𝑏̰ b) 𝑏𝑏̰ − 𝑎𝑎̰ c) −4𝑎𝑎̰ + 7𝑏𝑏̰
Equality of vectors in component form
If 𝒂𝒂̰ = 𝒙𝒙𝟏𝟏 𝒊𝒊̰ + 𝒚𝒚𝟏𝟏 𝒋𝒋̰ 𝒂𝒂𝒂𝒂𝒂𝒂 𝒃𝒃̰ = 𝒙𝒙𝟐𝟐 𝒊𝒊̰ + 𝒚𝒚𝟐𝟐 𝒋𝒋̰ , then 𝒂𝒂̰ = 𝒃𝒃̰ if and only if 𝒙𝒙𝟏𝟏 = 𝒙𝒙𝟐𝟐 and 𝒚𝒚𝟏𝟏 = 𝒚𝒚𝟐𝟐 .
13) Find the values of 𝑚𝑚 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑛𝑛 if 7𝚤𝚤̰ ̃ − 5𝚥𝚥̰ = (3𝑚𝑚 + 1)𝚤𝚤̰ + (4𝑛𝑛 − 9)𝚥𝚥̰
Relative position vectors
We have already looked at position vectors that represent
the position of one point in relation to the origin. A
relative positon vector represents a point’s position in
relation to another point.
The position vector of 𝐵𝐵 𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟 𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡 𝐴𝐴 is given by 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴.
In the diagram shown 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 = 3𝚤𝚤̰ − 2𝚥𝚥̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 = −𝚤𝚤̰ + 3𝚥𝚥̰ .
The position vector of 𝐵𝐵 𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟 𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡 𝐴𝐴 is given by
𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴, 𝑤𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑒𝑒𝑒𝑒𝑒 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 = 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 + 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 .
Now, 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 = −𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 + 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂
∴ 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 = 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 − 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂
= �−𝚤𝚤̰ + 3𝚥𝚥̰� − (3𝚤𝚤̰ − 2𝚥𝚥̰)
= −4𝚤𝚤̰ + 5𝚥𝚥̰
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14) The position vector of point 𝐴𝐴 on the Cartesian plane is 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 = 12𝚤𝚤̰ − 5𝚥𝚥̰ and the position vector
of point 𝐵𝐵 is 𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 = −7𝚤𝚤̰ + 6𝚥𝚥̰. Find the position vector of 𝐴𝐴 relative to 𝐵𝐵.
Parallel vectors
Two vectors are parallel if they are scalar multiples of each other:
If 𝒃𝒃̰ = 𝒌𝒌𝒂𝒂̰ , where 𝒌𝒌̰ is a real number, then 𝒃𝒃̰ is parallel to 𝒂𝒂̰ .
For example, if 𝑎𝑎̰ = 𝚤𝚤̰ − 3𝚥𝚥̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑏𝑏̰ = 4𝚤𝚤̰ − 12𝚥𝚥̰ , then 𝑏𝑏̰ = 4(𝚤𝚤̰ − 3𝚥𝚥̰)
∴ 𝑏𝑏̰ = 4𝑎𝑎̰ , so 𝑏𝑏̰ is parallel to 𝑎𝑎̰ .
15) Consider the three vecotrs 𝑎𝑎̰ = −2𝚤𝚤̰ + 3𝚥𝚥̰, 𝑏𝑏̰ = 8𝚤𝚤̰ − 5𝚥𝚥̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑐𝑐̰ = −8𝚤𝚤̰ + 12𝚥𝚥̰.
Which two vectors are parallel?
Unit vectors in component form
𝑎𝑎̰
Recall that a unit vector has a magnitude of 1 and a̰� = |𝑎𝑎̰ |.
1
Therefore, if 𝑎𝑎̰ = 𝑥𝑥𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦𝚥𝚥̰, then a̰� = �𝑥𝑥𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦𝚥𝚥̰�.
�𝑥𝑥 2 +𝑦𝑦2
�𝑥𝑥 2 +𝑦𝑦 2
It is usually better to express the unit vector with a rational denominator, so a̰� = �𝑥𝑥𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦𝚥𝚥̰�.
𝑥𝑥 2 +𝑦𝑦 2
A unit vector is a “direction finder”, in that it determines a vector’s direction but not its magnitude
If 𝑎𝑎̰ = 𝑥𝑥𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦𝚥𝚥̰, then
1
a̰� = �𝑥𝑥𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦𝚥𝚥̰�
�𝑥𝑥 2 + 𝑦𝑦 2
or
�𝑥𝑥 2 + 𝑦𝑦 2
a̰� = �𝑥𝑥𝚤𝚤̰ + 𝑦𝑦𝚥𝚥̰�
𝑥𝑥 2 + 𝑦𝑦 2
16) Find the unit vector a̰� for each of the following vectors.
a) 𝑎𝑎̰ = 4𝚤𝚤̰ − 3𝚥𝚥̰ b) 𝑎𝑎̰ = −5𝚤𝚤̰ + 8𝚥𝚥̰
17) Given 𝑐𝑐̰ = 3𝚤𝚤̰ − 6𝚥𝚥̰:
a) Find c̰� b) Find vector 𝑑𝑑̰ of magnitude 5 in the direction of 𝑐𝑐̰ .
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Questions:
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2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
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8)
9)
10)
11)
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Scalar Product of Vectors
The scalar product (also called the dot product or the inner product) is a way of multiplying two
vectors. The result of this multiplication is a scalar quantity (with magnitude but no direction). The
scalar product of two vectors 𝑎𝑎̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑏𝑏̰ is written as 𝑎𝑎̰ • 𝑏𝑏̰ (read as 𝑎𝑎̰ 𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑 𝑏𝑏̰ ).
There is also another product operation on vectors, the vector product or cross product, which is
written as 𝑎𝑎̰ × 𝑏𝑏̰ (read as 𝑎𝑎̰ 𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐 𝑏𝑏̰ ). The result of this multiplication is a vector quantity. This is
beyond the scope of this course.
If 𝜃𝜃 is the angle between the positive directions of
two vectors, 𝑎𝑎̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑏𝑏̰ , then the scalar product is
defined to be 𝑎𝑎̰ • 𝑏𝑏̰ = |𝑎𝑎̰ ||𝑏𝑏̰| 𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐 .
For a straight angle, 𝜃𝜃 = 𝜋𝜋, 𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑎̰ • 𝑏𝑏̰ = −|𝑎𝑎̰ ||𝑏𝑏̰| as
𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐 = −1
18) Given |𝑎𝑎̰ | = 5 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 |𝑏𝑏̰| = 6, find the scalar product of 𝑎𝑎̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑏𝑏̰ , correct to two [Link], in each of
the following.
a) b)
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Special cases of the scalar product
Special product for vectors in component form
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19) Find the scalar product 𝑎𝑎̰ • 𝑏𝑏̰ , 𝑔𝑔𝑔𝑔𝑔𝑔𝑔𝑔𝑔𝑔 𝑎𝑎̰ = 2𝚤𝚤̰ + 5𝚥𝚥̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑏𝑏̰ = −3𝚤𝚤̰ + 4𝚥𝚥̰.
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Questions:
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Projections of Vectors:
20) Consider the vectors 𝑎𝑎̰ = 5𝚤𝚤̰ − 𝚥𝚥̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑏𝑏̰ = 3𝚤𝚤̰ + 4𝚥𝚥̰
a) Find the scalar projection 𝑎𝑎̰ 𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜 𝑏𝑏̰ b) Find the scalar projection of 𝑏𝑏̰ 𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜 𝑎𝑎̰
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21) Consider the vectors 𝑎𝑎̰ = 2𝚤𝚤̰ − 5𝚥𝚥̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑏𝑏̰ = −2𝚤𝚤̰ + 3𝚥𝚥̰
a) Find the vector projection 𝑎𝑎̰ 𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜 𝑏𝑏̰ b) Find the vector projection 𝑎𝑎̰ 𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡 𝑏𝑏̰
Questions:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)
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Vectors in Geometric Proofs:
Vector Proof involving sides of a triangle:
22) Use vector method to prove that the line segment joining the midpoints of two sides of a
triangle is parallel to the third side and half its length.
Vector proof involving sides of a right angled triangle:
23) Use vector methods to prove Pythagoras theorem: in any right-angled triangle, the square on the
hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares on the other two sides.
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Vectors is Geometric Proofs:
22) Use vector methods to prove that the line segment joining the midpoints of two sides of a
triangle is parallel to the third side and half its length.
23) Use vector methods to prove Pythagoras theorem: in any right angled triangle, the square on the
hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares on the other two sides.
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1)
2)
3)
4)
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6)
7)
8)
9)
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• Displacement is the change in position of an object to its starting point. It is a vector quantity
with both magnitude and direction.
• Distance is how far an object has travelled. It is a scalar quantity with magnitude only.
• Velocity is the rate at which the displacement of an object is changing with resect to time. It
is a vector quantity with both magnitude and direction.
• Speed is the magnitude of the object’s velocity. It is a scalar quantity with magnitude only.
1) Marli is going for a walk around the block. She starts at
𝑂𝑂 and moves to point 𝐴𝐴 and then to point 𝐵𝐵, where she
stops to walk a friend.
Determine:
a) the distance Marli travels from 𝑂𝑂 to 𝐵𝐵.
b) Marli’s displacement from 𝑂𝑂 to 𝐵𝐵 to one decimal
place.
If Marli takes 10 minutes to reach point 𝐵𝐵, determine:
c) her average speed in metres per second, correct
to 1 [Link]
d) her average velocity in metres per second, correct
to 1 dec pl.
Finding resultant velocity
2) Peter can swim in still water at a rate of 3𝑚𝑚/𝑠𝑠. If he can swim in a river that is flowing at 4𝑚𝑚/𝑠𝑠
and keeps his direction perpendicular to the flow, find the magnitude of his velocity with respect
to the riverbank.
3) Let 𝚤𝚤̰ 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝚥𝚥̰ be unit vectors in the direction of east and north, respectively. Alan is swimming in the
ocean and his velocity relative to the water 𝑣𝑣̰ 1 𝑚𝑚/𝑠𝑠 is given by 𝑣𝑣̰ 1 = 2.5𝚤𝚤̰ + 1.0 𝚥𝚥̰. The oceans
current has a velocity of 𝑣𝑣̰ 2 𝑚𝑚/𝑠𝑠 where 𝑣𝑣̰ 2 = 0.5𝚤𝚤̰ − 3.0 𝚥𝚥̰. Find the magnitude and direction of
Alan’s resultant velocity 𝑣𝑣̰ 𝑚𝑚/𝑠𝑠, correct to one decimal place.
1)
2)
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3)
4)
5)
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8)
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10)
11)
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