Circular Path 972Ab3
1. **Problem Statement:** A person walks from point P along a circular path, passing through points Q, R, S, and returns to P. We need to determine which statements about distance and displacement are true.
2. **Key Concepts:**
- **Distance traveled** is the total length of the path covered.
- **Displacement** is the straight-line vector from the starting point to the ending point.
- For a circular path, the circumference is the total distance around the circle.
3. **Analyzing the statements:**
- (A) The total distance travelled is equal to the circumference of the circle.
- Since the person starts at P and returns to P after completing the circular path, the distance traveled is exactly one full circle, which equals the circumference.
- (B) Displacement of the person is zero.
- Displacement is the vector from start to end point. Since the person ends at the starting point P, displacement is zero.
- (C) Displacement is the circumference of the circle.
- This is false because displacement is a vector, not a scalar length, and here it is zero.
- (D) Distance traveled by the person is twice the radius.
- The circumference is $2\pi r$, which is greater than $2r$. So this is false.
4. **Final answers:** Statements (A) and (B) are true.