1D Motion

Our first task in tackling this problem is to write down everything we already know about the position function x(t) . From (1) we know that x(0) = 5 . (2) tells us that x(3) = - 2 , and (3) indicates that x(t) = - 2 for all t between 3 and 4. Finally, from (4) we know that x(6) = 1 . Because the elephant always moves "at a steady pace," we can plot these known points on the graph of the position function and fill in the rest by drawing straight lines between them. The final position function, defined for t valued between 0 and 6, looks like: Unlike other position functions we've discussed thus far, this one cannot be written as a single equation--algebraically it must be defined in pieces. For this reason it's a little easier to represent the solution graphically.