This question stemmed from a conversation about measuring the speed of two very different objects. I realized that, unlike other measures that have their own units (length, mass, etc.), speed is measured using a ratio of distance and time. So I was wondering, does the size of the objects get factored into the measurement somehow? If speed is only ever measured using this distance/time approach (mph, for example), then wouldn’t the measure of speed become problematic since a large object is able to cover more distance than a small object?
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Generally, no. Speed is actually a derivative function of position in mathematics, so its not possible to have a conversation about speed without talking about the distance covered in some amount of time.
Size of the object doesn’t really matter, because two objects traveling the same speed cover the same distance, regardless of size. Think of it like a train. A train with just the engine going 10mph will travel 10 miles in an hour. A train with 100 cars will cover the same 10 miles at 10mph – the caboose will be further back, but since it started further back it traveled the same amount of distance.
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