Rosendo C. De Guzman Jr.

12-St. James Son of Zebedee

1. Differentiate scalar and vector quantity.

A scalar quantity is a one dimensional measurement of a quantity, like temperature, or
mass. A scalar is any quantity that only requires a magnitude or size to describe it completely. A
scalar is any number that gives you the size or magnitude of a quantity, so a unit of measure must
be attached to the number, like degrees or meters. Any random number is not a scalar. For example,
the number 42 is meaningless unless you tell us that 42 is a measurement of something like distance
or time or temperature.
When someone tells you to throw a ball twice as hard and to the left, a vector was just used.
When someone tells you to drive northeast for about five miles, a vector was just used. So what
exactly is a vector? Any quantity that needs to be fully described by identifying its magnitude and
direction is referred to as a vector quantity. By magnitude, we mean size of the quantity, such as
length or strength. By direction, we mean where the vector is pointing or where it is being directed,
such as left or right, north, south, east, or west, or even up or down.
The difference between scalar and vector quantity is that scalars are quantities that are
fully described by a magnitude (or numerical value) alone. Vectors are quantities that are fully
described by both a magnitude and a direction.

2. Categorize all physical quantities or derived quantities as scalar or vector quantity.

Scalar Vector
Time Displacement
Volume Velocity
Speed Acceleration
Temperature Force
Mass Weight
Area Momentum
Power Angular momentum
Energy Impulse
Pressure Electric field
Charge Magnetic field
Electric current Current density
Specific heat Poynting vector
Frequency Vector potential
Scalar potential Lift
Work Drag
Rosendo C. De Guzman Jr.
12-St. James Son of Zebedee