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Displacement and Distance Travelled
Definition of Displacement and Distance Travelled
Displacement is defined as the change in position of an object from its initial to final position, measured in a straight line. It is a vector quantity and is denoted by Δx.
Distance travelled by an object is defined as the total path covered by the object during its motion. It is a scalar quantity and is denoted by d.
Relation between Displacement and Distance Travelled
Displacement and distance travelled are related but not the same. Displacement is a vector quantity that takes into account the direction of motion, whereas distance travelled is a scalar quantity that only considers the magnitude of motion.
If an object moves in a straight line, then the displacement and distance travelled are equal in magnitude. However, if the object moves in a curved path, then the displacement and distance travelled are not the same.
Answering the Question
If the displacement of a moving object in a given interval of time is zero, then it means that the object has returned to its initial position. However, the distance travelled by the object may or may not be zero depending on the path it has taken.
For example, if an object moves from point A to point B and then returns to point A, its displacement is zero. However, the distance travelled by the object is not zero since it covered a certain distance from point A to point B and then back to point A.
Therefore, it can be concluded that if the displacement of a moving object in a given interval of time is zero, the distance travelled by the object may or may not be zero depending on the path it has taken.