A car accelerates uniformly from rest - Scottish Highers Physics - Question 1 - 2016

To find the acceleration of the car, we can use the equation of motion:

$s = ut + \frac{1}{2}at^2$

where:

• $s$ is the distance traveled (60 m)
• $u$ is the initial velocity (0 m/s, since the car starts from rest)
• $a$ is the acceleration (which we need to find)
• $t$ is the time (6.0 s)

Substituting the known values into the equation:

$60 = 0 \cdot 6 + \frac{1}{2}a(6)^2$

This simplifies to:

$60 = \frac{1}{2}a(36).$

Therefore, multiplying both sides by 2 gives:

$120 = 36a$

Now, solve for $a$:

$a = \frac{120}{36} = 3.33 \text{ m/s}^2.$

Thus, the acceleration of the car is approximately 3.3 m/s², which corresponds to option B.