Unit of Acceleration - Definition, Examples, Types, FAQs

Unit of Acceleration - Definition, Examples, Types, FAQs

Edited By Vishal kumar | Updated on Sep 24, 2024 09:38 PM IST

Here, in this article we are going to discuss the SI unit of acceleration, unit of acceleration, CGS unit of acceleration, MKS unit of acceleration, what is the SI unit of acceleration, what is the unit of acceleration, what si unit of acceleration is, SI unit of measurement of acceleration is, what unit of acceleration is, what the unit of acceleration is, what is unit of acceleration, write the unit of acceleration, write SI unit of acceleration, acceleration cgs unit, SI and CGS unit of acceleration, the SI unit for acceleration is, and the magnitude of the acceleration.

What is the SI unit of acceleration?

The SI unit of acceleration is meter per squared second orhttps://lh3.googleusercontent.com/MKGqrD4VAc12Aew1djFoamanhGvpp4vSJ04qviSavzZIl7YnuZgDiOoP4LVPeWVw2HUOlJX1HsJ8hLQag9SIj3zw7BC8Xsl7E0CsGUrHZoV2uYtw7d4ajIMDjGXJfwm1FVggW4U=s0.

Mathematically, the acceleration and the SI unit of acceleration can be written as

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/VGDBTGAYUT1WQqIwz9XwOlzPTQAkdjQz-sSi-kXUirI55FcUulVaLLEA5DZYUXR9_rB0aEtfc0eijrkAy1rZOSTv299zMBtN4gj7GEULJLOVs5ETcj0xKXMxp4UMVDKOjPnpJKQ=s0

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What is the unit of acceleration?

Acceleration can be defined as the change of the rate of velocity. Hence, the unit of acceleration ishttps://lh3.googleusercontent.com/MKGqrD4VAc12Aew1djFoamanhGvpp4vSJ04qviSavzZIl7YnuZgDiOoP4LVPeWVw2HUOlJX1HsJ8hLQag9SIj3zw7BC8Xsl7E0CsGUrHZoV2uYtw7d4ajIMDjGXJfwm1FVggW4U=s0.

CGS unit of acceleration

The CGS unit of acceleration is https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/eA84j9_sO_8oHbay4VUn2JX57M0Ac02IfS2_mqBgm40kX50zTlDAsDjt8DmPo7JfvdAerxZ-tSQDumwVYpjslCiIMurkbAnKO4fR2k0jfNEsNCn6wi18KD137rM9zPtZzAIcfqU=s0

MKS unit of acceleration

The MKS unit of acceleration ishttps://lh3.googleusercontent.com/MKGqrD4VAc12Aew1djFoamanhGvpp4vSJ04qviSavzZIl7YnuZgDiOoP4LVPeWVw2HUOlJX1HsJ8hLQag9SIj3zw7BC8Xsl7E0CsGUrHZoV2uYtw7d4ajIMDjGXJfwm1FVggW4U=s0.

Now let us learn more about the acceleration.

We know that the rate of change of velocity is defined as the acceleration. It is a vector quantity. When we compare force and acceleration then we get a relation between mass and force. Using that relation we get acceleration as Force per unit mass and the corresponding unit of acceleration becomeshttps://lh4.googleusercontent.com/93mhTlXi4mDjx8bdKmcJmte9_e_NfgxL1BV8XQLFYpY9AR_Cxn1Bqf3lHrNn--yjqpvpGNiLCxAKlir5m6yi3C8jSoCo8JSNeAna53iixV0oT26De2hyrbW4XASKVkhQZHDzQMA=s0.

Mathematically, the unit of acceleration can be expressed as,

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/a5yd7dWS4VJb2DVwq8akjPcrZWedkuCOKTPfr4pLGx1VPew7PqNCjCaHxwPXn5oORGGhScEZWKvv_QD0wUHIrFszicQFeCpmm_0iypPW56dXcI-XL07I6aW-_ECbADdOu3ZfyeA=s0

Dimensional unit of acceleration

Dimensionally, unit of acceleration can be represented as,

Acceleration = https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/8aKW7C4whv5HfC8zBX4neXRBCvcWchSu5p88OfRYliO_BRZt8hTKqe67rg7_obAvJvzrFGY15FEA7kDnl14DRN4wSKDzqdk4iI5Mvlokgfro2kXw__1o8ibXcNpouMiLWbA4hTA=s0

Average acceleration of a particle in a time interval is defined as the change in velocity divided by the time interval. Let https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ekyRDUCuTcmw5V8mxJ22DeLqWQXOurC-uhpUjjVGVB2IlmCWjO4ybpTs___NR5u98OIFC6fdHAFgCILIGyXLWe55O-8LgYlMcGEbXMbAbB0LKmDF3ky4Ma2cwH56_jN-j8_WAQ=s0 and https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/UOWz-jvoM4ybgrYOn5hAPb2S-g9BMTdeusFmhIRKfeBiUrzE4sKz9WzZNk1QeZLYZvvl3WBKl71oWpr56JPeMJMEhJHurrQU69hlsi2almfeAK7FWvqbbi-wTL9mh05x-JfUWys=s0 be the instantaneous velocities of particle at times https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/5RuLjzni75VTXPLf4sshiVjLvx-qFmo74aKJcMmyH18NZ3VEFhQDJr3vgeRbFeXFxWZWijmuty7g4nFVEWf0oKYMPDMow4enc1Lc-wIFaDQCls3kIiU2jLqvE1fIlCVG8n1r0TM=s0 and https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/zl-TIzilltfe9FVKzG9jqcBTMW_6IV87uIr7_1VyuSBl3wol4pz44VxCwcVLUPbFT9Q0_lJq2gHG2a2fd8UlCLjM-X6QizZIBXmkazmBHCiJ-JHH9ZjShvvRhau62ecdAlY3mP0=s0, then the average acceleration can be written as follows:

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/gm1mqOzFHHvu9Zay4njqCWixgQJKWFr9ig-uT6zQ2xnoYh1ZoS5OABidCYHCztJqSGZljjXUCe-E7fET9GtFPPA2E4SDELV_ioF8_eWgZq2n8psQPSub8LN-vg2U207Vrk8AoVQ=s0

In case of straight line motion when the velocity and acceleration both are directed along the same direction or have the same sign then magnitude of velocity increases and such kind of motion is called accelerated motion. When velocity and acceleration are along the opposite directions or are having opposite signs then magnitude of velocity decreases with time and such kind of motion is called retarding motion. Let https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/i1oy4hx0CKc7nNYYOWGqbeA6m8FfuGlhc7X49-SIXfMgCBSQP_uHtFfNSy9WyvDR2Iy7n_pS0RO3ToZY-U0aYXdLPZT2fTQ0AOIgcgrOAzoxfjRTsqSuoB0kPnt0WutaW4iPhlM=s0 and https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/mU2qS5WTq4Qquo8WjIyq9LjXzVuPocMgCbIA7RUGh0r-qkKM21mokscZPGx994khmpF_YUDrKoXLCXVj9c9rLzz2bAjv_-bwLxcEkIeKUeW_SBN7SMYCBCFqs-DhwYnJiFh9bpo=s0represent velocity and acceleration at some instant of time then we can write the following:

  • If https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/i1oy4hx0CKc7nNYYOWGqbeA6m8FfuGlhc7X49-SIXfMgCBSQP_uHtFfNSy9WyvDR2Iy7n_pS0RO3ToZY-U0aYXdLPZT2fTQ0AOIgcgrOAzoxfjRTsqSuoB0kPnt0WutaW4iPhlM=s0 and https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/mU2qS5WTq4Qquo8WjIyq9LjXzVuPocMgCbIA7RUGh0r-qkKM21mokscZPGx994khmpF_YUDrKoXLCXVj9c9rLzz2bAjv_-bwLxcEkIeKUeW_SBN7SMYCBCFqs-DhwYnJiFh9bpo=s0, both are positive then the particle is accelerated. If https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/i1oy4hx0CKc7nNYYOWGqbeA6m8FfuGlhc7X49-SIXfMgCBSQP_uHtFfNSy9WyvDR2Iy7n_pS0RO3ToZY-U0aYXdLPZT2fTQ0AOIgcgrOAzoxfjRTsqSuoB0kPnt0WutaW4iPhlM=s0 and https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/mU2qS5WTq4Qquo8WjIyq9LjXzVuPocMgCbIA7RUGh0r-qkKM21mokscZPGx994khmpF_YUDrKoXLCXVj9c9rLzz2bAjv_-bwLxcEkIeKUeW_SBN7SMYCBCFqs-DhwYnJiFh9bpo=s0, both are negative then also particles are accelerated.

  • If https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/i1oy4hx0CKc7nNYYOWGqbeA6m8FfuGlhc7X49-SIXfMgCBSQP_uHtFfNSy9WyvDR2Iy7n_pS0RO3ToZY-U0aYXdLPZT2fTQ0AOIgcgrOAzoxfjRTsqSuoB0kPnt0WutaW4iPhlM=s0 is positive and https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/mU2qS5WTq4Qquo8WjIyq9LjXzVuPocMgCbIA7RUGh0r-qkKM21mokscZPGx994khmpF_YUDrKoXLCXVj9c9rLzz2bAjv_-bwLxcEkIeKUeW_SBN7SMYCBCFqs-DhwYnJiFh9bpo=s0 is negative then particle is retarded.

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Uniform acceleration

It can be defined as when a body is in motion and the equal amount of velocity changes in equal intervals of time. For example:- a freely falling object

Non-Uniform Acceleration

When a body is in motion and changes unequal amount of velocity in equal intervals of time is known as non-uniform acceleration. For example:- Vehicles moving on a road frequently change its velocity ultimately changing its acceleration.

Instantaneous acceleration

Instantaneous acceleration is defined as the limiting value of average acceleration when the time interval is infinitesimally small. Mathematically, it can be represented as

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/feoQJQKZjefq8EvmkmKZ5Hby7Q9onmNgEc4DeIN4rwj3Hjw6FAVQrBZKts2DbAqfwZe-UsZ4nw5Is7vmKTCo0xL8oB1T_zeFRtzv5Q3jUE_19Gw0qqLFuThQE7EXxfpqxkcYIAo=s0

When a body moves in a circular path, it can have three different types of accelerations.

1. Angular acceleration: https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Km-L-zK7OP6Hvyyf0u7xJEDA7ayX-nNTSCqd5eGYmmEgU14Oiz-UvyBxp8aMGB3BnOWj1-Wa-6V2_-FsMuWT93U27XKU7Y5NcDbPYzBEGN0xI9iAoBfPaPtxURqIfTdwrGpOLB4=s0and the unit of acceleration is https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-eGXp3foqwi2zOZh2H3MpTp0j2qQ2fp7QvO8HSI1uWDRxlt6xvydDxoFyK6X4oDgz8K_lUQYLgVhbE0TS4zCWggBCQi6m4VaSPpjiKypq5Rurjc0zsZPTSxznRCUffj5f8-LVrE=s0. It is an angular quantity.

2. Tangential acceleration: https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/BpZKbic93-HUncShZGDB1eg6Nd1PYssatNW-9CuA6FWLto6vDcEwkdWrqjr6Ir2wgn_b9N_f6IYhut_aCO8pcbbVfJl-9Gc5HV-UFwYV9xoH1-LbnHgk1qO6Bht5vTer9H1OILA=s0 and the unit of acceleration is https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/JrtPCQQCoESf0YR5YEuhYR-tsMFm1JXPiA1-4IgBwUt7ypmGy8Td_2jWMDU38II7XvZzOggDw6nOayIeCGfJZ5lYBVj7oy8DKO7P6hYlifnxjGa9a121zzMiIvntEcjK8a4Zorg=s0. It is a linear quantity.

3. Centripetal acceleration:https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/6T6wjcKIGcPjmZE0zjcC5ShD8GPGRANZWciMLm7jDWImmpx8lmD6iQcSqdvUFyIl28QPMyCPM9uO8GKUuhgl99RtpUsRhA7odUKa26yXejtIB6PYHtrx5VtON90EmXjAYmNsvpY=s0 and the unit of acceleration is https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/JrtPCQQCoESf0YR5YEuhYR-tsMFm1JXPiA1-4IgBwUt7ypmGy8Td_2jWMDU38II7XvZzOggDw6nOayIeCGfJZ5lYBVj7oy8DKO7P6hYlifnxjGa9a121zzMiIvntEcjK8a4Zorg=s0. It is a linear quantity.

All the unit of acceleration

1. SI unit of acceleration:- 1641278623956

2. CGS unit of acceleration:- 1641278624800

3. MKS unit of acceleration:- 1641278623871

4. Angular acceleration:- 1641278625851

5. Tangential acceleration:- 1641278625017

6. Centripetal acceleration:- 1641278624929

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Some Examples

Q.1 A motorcyclist starts from rest and accelerates to a speed of 60 km/hr in 50s, on a straight road. Calculate the distance covered by the motorcyclist in this time.

Sol) Here, initial velocity, https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/caJmlbOZ5MYdBVFinonVmZ9DtXieV_Flhw1XYd5-NvVznB4QDuTq-2ffNNwC9sHBalc5Fr1vZsG4e3eOQonM9S9aUU0aFSTv77OBBUlpAapNDoNv5uqVCxYxrS4WDexZ0rEDY4o=s0

Time, https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_eseyEQ7Wam7eE6QAtvQjPpaMJ3k8HMuHSwlOKTeowL5-VknAfhUwiERZbCCotzFqruFCUOJMmUe0cSh5MMDKymiDispdTGXLBeturwx4AU0uc7BiiV6Pz1_No_8PG1ebhsQTMA=s0s

Final velocity, https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/eQf6sAPenOaQZA5qmGQbbbSJjA9f6f5cG-_Y4UhmWko2_B6xHEv7HjoAzVeNPt1S_FX4WPt-d8ffgwu-J6in19pNlGMqvhuWpN5-7qax_q-J6PilwBFwnljwye6seEsbXWlblwI=s0km/h = https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/0kzXrn8a5DsoPaCeo92eXbRBJVWWErJK1kLTFhNEJsqKqRSRt49N9Umt56cyvLy1-WRNW7VIDWI-auoq_ALLJdUU5C719tKYW_aQYO75LL1ptLGoHGSDwDdA-vTBauyK2Xca4B8=s0m/s

Now, using https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/S7i3cN9gsvqCgwgF8p7pIH656uSBb_Oitjzvy2DvUL3GZf07h1X6jaRK0ZEBlUCgVPuXRVCIuRjgztiiK2mzfiNX3wEay4tUF_Vd545yM3BuYNM8VMPt2ULAioBZoGZo7uu-8q0=s0, we have

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/AOg12Qd5FH-TDjETtBGE5dkWJxK5uo7f0YsY1E4vAPJMo5MkU3LK7DbeA2QOIeo4gkBbcwrsl-CCdVyk53SK0CqX7Gf6jwMx-PeLLZEnPpVLs1tVFIDDWU-aW9EVf3w9SAiAoR8=s0

Distance, https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/YvJ-J_i5FTsSYuh0DVd_sPhLyW05Dy1kVsQcdYOcHv179-Hyp-Lnzbyn5tSj-OYLu3vNalWuHY01NDg2bGFQsEpfQBTi9D5tAC8TU_JhNk8Dl4oQkiCwwmdQETz9Eq7j1-69VKs=s0=https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/7SCQ-vRRgFenQ6_JHsRBhc80qfxzASJCq2Whyp33D3u16JFzFrGbSAuE5-vtq9DrPpXyKxoseQDaLCoHbFbgngbzPUBp318UFDLMk30On_bZ5oVn2FWMxEpi709yYqe8zPY9lVs=s0

Q.2) A truck starts from rest and accelerates uniformly to a velocity of 40m/s in 10 s. It then runs with this uniform velocity and is finally brought to rest in 50 m by a uniform deceleration. If the total run of the truck is 500 m, find its acceleration, deceleration and total time of journey.

Sol) When the truck has uniform acceleration after starting from rest:

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_b-MMhKpRT-7XNgqojuqRswikxp3v2WTjyxjuUvRsNNkMwWZcDh3PHp6Mz7TYMQ4EkCSLLOFYv54cVODV5JQvx9kRgqCdUpDvfag4Hcu7FST26C1cl4Qs7QB8NMTuCfU-jIMujA=s0m/s, https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/RtuBWhPt5syAcqR4RCk6DFTMAGfFipX6_OQ9iX3_5fszVXF4axK7XC2pPKUXXc9OY2KFxmBQ4PddYmW_ciaQThbMRtulUBRVwoly56B7Ghhz_3KgooRSKbBjJ8br9tJCHg3-pII=s0s, https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/MEX1Drq3G6PFz9AcZxRe5onj9j-7qQGehEXfWNMsNE4XUw5FzyRWfosEi5a9dp2J07XzKRoW-HLBJrVXflTF_4HvlfxAZECE7yuZepAivU4Svdyqs53fFCkcAgxitqE-NXdI6lw=s0m/s

Using, https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/S7i3cN9gsvqCgwgF8p7pIH656uSBb_Oitjzvy2DvUL3GZf07h1X6jaRK0ZEBlUCgVPuXRVCIuRjgztiiK2mzfiNX3wEay4tUF_Vd545yM3BuYNM8VMPt2ULAioBZoGZo7uu-8q0=s0, we have

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/3kHI-PsBYLkdSLUEu8vLCF7hz01h3gAcetJ0JZtNf7gbPa36zFWRVB2MTBw7ZjCMgbFayLlM8Z7x-ZewLZNwx5GctGVZld8OMnj2b6korMmYtbjEWCCepNxx1YMXkTINb86JJ_k=s0

Distance travelled, https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/4MERSru6ZmpdjzRLLSgbCKC7fhmTWCLsWRJOFM3uELJGK_46Y1LBidzcG_bdQejH_sMbC4FFUpwoopg9Bcct-zzVVHcIc5qwkBKgbbamcZwklQzSuALm47_21E-IT8eYBdc2pW8=s0

When the truck runs with uniform velocity:

Let distance covered is https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/RoIDimnBuWf4D4Ts9AVswrB853u5yUD01Aiysud-0U21rzvmQg061ixiG9sBFIKVOUQ8aF08E6sMiZnXcTJVjY6e75-9SZEOTfVU5Zx_t8ND0osx1-QT9B6TRogWPh_ffKftyZ8=s0in this case. If https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/LcuKQCj9u4QC035U4apgH0AfXmUZlBui7fcK2kI3iIWydr8_mL7etpjMESsKu9L4SaI-TE3nFrLsnZXrCzGbjMZcKlPZRimesYYYz8eZoMDVcQEsSC1cGZOMQFORhMKXL67Q8cQ=s0is the distance covered during deceleration, then,

As https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/QE7DpCgR7a4sZyCg47RU2HZRQOupmSWx8KT-b7FwJofASBgrKk4pscb3iOzhFjR6LXA1AQbimtG3_xOt1Y4cthb1YSkee2P7V_1VKUI60NOpxeD1R4s_g9kS6nwfXAvivdLRQCU=s0

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/rklV2nKsqD9_wHT-h2RJDCvXCkmX8R7jEfUQZi5-b-EbDhWOtPjAMVkvQLFvgct4oHpo9W78E2Wd-MyzsJ1o97RAnupBTex_PyqkUM2wH2nOepwKGs8j4Pp6ijvnKz5vvkv0BhI=s0

This distance is covered with a uniform velocity of https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/RTVtWJ3dZVT6GY6Jv28Xf8zYgVGh8gDdjtPGfpbpxKRhdD5lj7lGwFIAgza11gLylv41aSkWE6ybVup6ZJjC--OsYbxbMnwIdeeiwEdlLY3jVtXBAerTt41bksP8iErGKj34LDs=s0

Therefore, time taken = https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/G97vQsRYn8HvtfP3GIRwPDTGvYqJ1tuSsqT1tM9gOa2dVjm6W3h0OTBv2GLmLACX_xXV8HShOFt-vdaheP5PwkOyvYnIUHjQ_m2sLyCcO_s6YPAF9zb8t5vyjck2iTLkgpXAUIc=s0

When the truck is finally brought to rest:

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/R6IgcotKXMQV-izAa_BtItGS2dsSupznL3hQLvbdEmpIWdQKUDMOhGI_uSgqJrTvBORmpzVmaZtWphzWsFkQidGYy4eC6e-YOZulQBcw6oZOWjjZpPg2MpRxIQifyr8-H6oCAMQ=s0, https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/VU7w5prbbfkMNN5urVPi9l8mzec2QuvlIVTLibn2MPEFCFUZVCysTL5zvK4wuhLO3_-G6jEjPq14-bdWozYoamd4Qpz74XPaCm0XC6JHWA7UyaLmQ7E7YYlHwqKq1cbRX4JgjPw=s0, https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/MRSCIDwgTI_rYhD2TaftibIdBs9gyun4bfu2DEzaG4nAeQfHOt_QPT9e6ODMZMzqjB0nGukmqagLfGxXwnyaGDNH_-Qg03D_ZN2AK3bNzJ100hRFzMwRZHEPskyQoNAQCRK69MU=s0

Therefore, https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/51YmPYRwwmCWz0z58UxqbIDR5DmydN23msrqQYMsHvuuFU5NBdZRj5uUcDPgVvf8qy8AQUU-hHgo9aRFv7XHwsIhg4ue8SHIlxZ3048P7vHYvkZOnliiK4SaZgQPHoHKg2jgBHk=s0

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/037a-STaCylHlXKo50_QvJSXeFwWPaEHlZhA0xg_IgWREbnBk10BfRkIoTEfGZsUklagFouE4atu71hwW0SCcs9q9vMJ-FZPPl8POB6Sq1MsJIe_vdHcyecIPnqBOvW9E3Yq5gI=s0

Retardation = https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/XGh1e6w1OaQRojQYEmvABntIjZ1e2v5f1lNAgpvAdok_jwqGxi9NtL4GEe3palMEU71hXA2V7fGrvDAdG0SaTSTpnHqzBwm7ClprwGrQllBT_lROZ-AIVEF2poTN8Ykie_tT9sM=s0

Also, https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/bBFhoJbTYORP5irAcsDNuaZtoFb5DfvxHVHgBs8K6wJCizEvRiESqIxYQvzkjgYHUU2rQxlHgUlXh1HTsIMcykdHVG35XI-fcJXqpPynvt2vB4WpNTC1HoOouN3t8YdXdH5kB7I=s0

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/6q9ahpoP0sfiuiDrBZlBvcU74c_yJNk1PFG3hXyNdHoemSsmitZvpbk2CSQwiD_FaKugff2VkPdh2T15Sa7NwapCZg0DfidfeR0FMH3h7KnmWuzif0hMq23MU5sa6B3lv6CZFe4=s0

Hence, the total time taken for the journey = https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/2FGVscswN9G775LxlnmmYUfUYI-Lg3kZW_1wYXxMyHqUsYo23_k5RXCETUqESyBkJnPJgye-PjJXNbjrI5Mdn8_Zblw9rP7DWkxQLS9anuKWkcd_-DkmDFkin6AUA9IzQ34Y-Mo=s0

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