Here are the essential concepts you must grasp in order to answer the question correctly.
Simple Harmonic Motion (SHM)
Simple Harmonic Motion is a type of periodic motion where an object moves back and forth around an equilibrium position. The motion can be described by sinusoidal functions, such as sine or cosine, which represent the displacement over time. In this context, the equation d = 3 cos(πt + π/2) indicates that the object oscillates with a maximum displacement of 3 inches.
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Frequency and Period
Frequency refers to the number of cycles an object completes in one second, while the period is the time taken to complete one full cycle. These two concepts are inversely related; the frequency (f) is the reciprocal of the period (T), expressed as f = 1/T. In the given equation, the coefficient of t in the cosine function helps determine both the frequency and the period of the motion.
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Phase Shift
Phase shift refers to the horizontal shift of a periodic function along the time axis. It indicates how much the function is shifted from its standard position. In the equation d = 3 cos(πt + π/2), the phase shift can be calculated by rearranging the argument of the cosine function, which helps in understanding how the motion starts relative to the standard cosine wave.
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