Q 3.17 Figure shows the x-t plot of one-dimensional motion of a particle. Is it correct to say from the graph that the particle moves in a straight line for t < 0 and on a parabolic path for t > 0? If not, suggest a suitable physical context for this graph.
It cannot be said from the above-given graph whether the particle is moving along a straight line or along a parabolic path as the x-t graph does not tell us about the trajectory taken by the particle. From the given graph we can only say that the position of the particle along the x-axis does not change till time t=0 and after that it starts increasing in non-linear manner.