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Distance travelled exceeds the magnitude of displacement whenever the path is:
AExactly a straight line
BTravelled very quickly
CTravelled very slowly
DNot a straight line
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: D. Not a straight line
1. The two agree only for the most direct route.
2. Displacement is the change in position of an object.
3. The distance between two positions is not the same as the distance travelled between them.
4. A straight path covers exactly the gap between start and end.
5. Any other path covers more ground, so distance exceeds displacement.
_Source: OpenStax College Physics for AP Courses 2e (CC BY 4.0), Ch 2 'Kinematics', sections 2.1-2.8_
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