Forces affect how objects move. They may cause motion; they may also slow, stop, or change the direction of motion of an object that is already moving. Since force cause changes in the speed or direction of an object, we can say that forces cause changes in velocity. Remember that acceleration is a change in velocity.

The Importance of Motion Movement is a vital nutrient to your body, just as much as food, water or oxygen. It feeds the brain, producing essential nutrient stimulation (called proprioception).

The exact position of an object is the separation between the object and the reference point. When an object moves, we often refer to the amount it moves as the distance. We need to know the starting point and the direction of the motion. The change in the position of the object is called its displacement.

We can change both speed and direction at the same time by the proper use of force. Imagine slowing down your bicycle while taking a turn. The shape of an object can also be changed by applying force on it. An example is modeling clay, which can be given different shapes by the application of force on it.

Objects can moved by selecting them in the work-area and moving them using the mouse. However, you can directly set the position and size of an object from within its properties.

When a force acts on an object, the object may change shape by bending, stretching or compressing – or a combination of all three shape changes. Pull an object’s ends apart, eg when a rubber band is stretched. Push an object’s ends together, eg when an empty drinks can is squashed.

The direction of motion is the direction the velocity vector points in. To take your example of a projectile fired straight up, because only it’s height, z, is changing the velocity vector will look like: →v=(0,0,dzdt)