Speed and Acceleration Experiment
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
4:41 PM
To Experiment with and explain the relationship of speed and acceleration I will push a ball down a meter sticks surface and measure how long it takes to get to the other side to show speed. Then I will role the same ball the same distance down a sloped meter stick to show acceleration and measure how long it takes each ball to get to the other side. By keeping the materials constant I will eliminate external variables.
Problem = Will a ping pong ball travel farther down a flat or 3 inch slanted meter stick when pushed with the same force?
Hypothesis = I think the ball will travel down the slanted meter stick faster because the ball will gain acceleration as it continues down the stick.
Experiment =
Materials =
1. 1 Meter stick ( that is curved down the middle )
2. 1 Ping pong ball
3. 1 Timer
4. A 3 inch slanted surface
5. A Flat table
6. 1 Ruler
Procedure =
1. Gather all materials
2. Roll ping pong ball down the meter stick and time how long it takes to reach the other end .
3. Put a book under the meter stick so that it is slanted by 3 inches
4. Roll ball down slanted meter stick applying the same amount of force
5. Time that trial
6. Repeat steps 2- 5 5 times
7. Record data
8. Clean up
Variables =
Constant variable = same ball, same meter stick, same person timing, same location, same slope for each of the slopped trials.
Independent variable = different slopes of the meter stick.
Dependant variable = how long it takes for the ball to reach the other end of the meter sick
Controll= the ping pong ball
Observation = In my experiment my observations showed that the balls that rolled down the slanted slope got across faster than the balls that were rolled across the flat surface.
(See data table and graph below)
Conclusion = In conclusion my hypothesis was correct when I stated that the ball would travel farther when it went down a sloped stick because as the ball goes down the slopped stick it gains acceleration getting faster and faster the more it goes down the stick. Therefore the less time it takes the ball to reach the other end.
Speed and Acceleration Explanation
Monday, October 25, 2010
9:36 AM
To experiment with the relationship between speed and acceleration I formed an experiment to show how when a ball gets pushed down a flat surface it has speed but when it is pushed down a slanted surface it gains acceleration. In my experiment I pushed a ping pong ball down a flat and slanted surface to see which one would reach the end first. I was able to get constant results with in my opinion no external variables considering that I kept everything from the ball to the location constant.
Proficiancy 1 Law 1
To experiment and explain how Newton's Laws of motion apply to the physical world I will experiment the first law by throwing a basketball and tennis ball and measure the distance to see witch one is thrown further to show inertia. Newton's 2nd law applies to the physical world in my gravity experiment. The third law will be shown by pushing two balls against a book to see weather they have an equal reaction each time. I will eliminate external variables in the first experiment mostly by staying in the same location.
Problem = Will a basketball or tennis ball travel farther depending on there inertia when they are thrown with the same amount of force.
Hypothesis = I think that the tennis ball will be able to be thrown farther because it weighs much less therefore it has less inertia than the basketball therefore it will be easier to throw.
Experiment =
Materials =
1. 1 basketball
2. 1 tennis ball
3. 1 ruler
Procedure =
1. Gather all Materials
2. Throw tennis ball in an open space
3. Measure how far the tennis ball travels
4. Throw basketball in an open space using the same amount of force
5. Measure how far it travels
6. Repeat steps 2-5 5 times
7. Record data
8. Clean up
Variables =
Constant variable= Same location, same person throwing, same unit of measurement.
Independent varialbe = the different types of balls being thrown
Dependant variable= how far the balls were thrown
Control = same person throwing the balls
Observation = Through my experiment I did each trial in the same place at the same time throwing both the tennis ball and basketball with the same amount of force. As I did the experiment overall the tennis ball traveled farther.
(See graph)
Conclusion = In conclusion on average the tennis ball traveled a distance of 190.6 inches per throw, where as the basketball had a average of only 154.8 inches per throw. Therefore my hypothesis was correct when I stated that the tennis ball would travel farther because the tennis ball has less inertia.
Proficiancy 1 law 3
(law 2 shown in gravity experiment below)
Problem = When two balls are pushed against a flat surface with the same force and speed will they have the same reaction based on how far they bounce off a surface?
Hypothesis = I think they will have the same reaction because if they both have the same mass and height and they pushed with the same amount of force they should have an equal reaction according to Newton's laws.
Experiment =
Materials =
2 bouncy balls
1 table
1 book for balls to bounce off of.
1 ruler
Procedure =
1. Gather all materials
2. Bounce one bouncy ball off of the book
3. Record how far the ball bounces off.
4. Bounce the other identical bouncy ball off the book with the same amount of force.
5. Record how far the ball bounces off.
6. Repeat steps 2-5 5 times
7. Record data
8. Clean up
Variables =
Constant variable = same surface, same location, same bouncy balls. Same book the balls will be bounced off of, same amount of force each ball is thrown at.
Independent variable = different bouncy balls
Dependant variable = how far the balls bounce back in inches
Control = the book
Observation=
In my experiment I bounced each bouncy ball off of the books witch the same amount of force each time and I observed that overall the balls both bounced off of the book the same distance.
(see graph)
Conclusion = In conclusion my hypothesis was correct when I stated that the balls would bounce off the book equally because of Newton's 3rd law. The average distance for ball 1 was 3.6 inches while the average for ball 2 was 3.7 inches. This occurred because for every action there is an opposite and equal reaction.
Proficiency 1 Explanation
To show how the first law of motion is used in the physical world I used two objects that are commonly found in the physical world which are a tennis ball and basketball. To show the inertia that they have I through both the tennis ball and basketball to see which one will travel the farthest because of inertia and the tennis ball won because it has less inertia therefore it was easier to throw farther. The second law of motion I showed in my second proficiency. To show how the 3rd law of motion applies to the physical world I again used common household objects such as bouncy balls and a book. To show Newton’s 3rd law I bounced each ball off of the book with the same amount of force to see if they would have equal reactions in which they did because the average of how far they bounced of the book was only 1 tenth of an inch difference. Both experiments I was able to perform with a vary little amount of external variables by keeping all materials constant. The only external variable I may have had is that I might not have thrown the balls each time with the exact amount of force but I got it as close as I could.
Proficicancy 2
To experiment with and explain how friction and gravity apply to Newton's law of motion I will have 2 pheoc write ups showing, 1 how two things of opposite weight fall at the same time to show Newton's 2nd law and explain how this experiment has occurred in other historic events like when the astronauts tried it. I will measure by timing how long it takes each ball to hit the ground. To show how friction applies to Newton's laws I will show how friction applies to Newton's First Law by spinning a ball and then letting go to see if friction stops the ball. My experiment will measure how long it takes the ball to stop spinning once it has been let go compared to if it is kept spinning for the entire time. For these experiments I will eliminate external variables by being in the same location using the same materials.
Prof. 2 gravity lab
Monday, November 08, 2010
4:09 PM
Problem = When two objects are dropped at the same time but have different weights such as a basketball and a tennis ball. Will they fall at different rates or at the same time?
Hypothesis= I think that both objects will fall at the same rate because of the fact that through the history of people performing this experiment on earth and on the moon the two objects always hit the ground at the same time.
Experiment =
Materials =
1 basketball
1 tennis ball
1 flat floor
1 timer
1 ruler
Procedure =
1. Gather all materials
2. Drop a basketball from exactly 5 feet from the ground
3. Time how long the ball takes to hit the ground
4. Drop the tennis ball from exactly 5 feet from the ground
5. Time how long it takes to hit the ground.
6. Repeat steps 2-5 5 times
7. Record Data
8. Clean up
Variables =
Constant variable = same timer, same person timing, same location, same height balls are dropped at.
Independent variable = different balls being dropped
Dependant variable= time it takes the balls to drop.
Constant = height balls are dropped at.
Observation During the experiment I dropped both the tennis ball and the basketball from the same distance from the ground each time. After doing 5 trials my results were very similar to each other. I was able to successfully do the experiment with very little external variables.
(see graph)
Conclusion = My hypothesis was correct when I stated that I thought both balls would hit the ground at the same time. In my experiment on average the tennis ball hit the ground in 0.45 seconds after it had been dropped. The basketball on average hit the ground in 0.41 seconds after it had been dropped. My hand is not fast enough to hit the timer to the 100th of a second so I would say that they both stopped at the same rate. The only external variable that may have occurred was that I may have not hit the timer fast enough each time but other than that my experiment did not have any other external variables.
Prof 2. Friction Lab
Monday, November 08, 2010
4:09 PM
Problem = Will a bouncy ball that is spun for 20 seconds stop spinning in less time or more time than a bouncy ball that has been spun for 10 seconds because of friction?
Hypothesis = I think that the ball that is spun for 20 seconds will spin for longer after it is stopped being spun because the more the ball is spun the more the ball will gain speed and continue to spin longer.
Experiment =
Materials =
1 bouncy ball
1 timer
1 table with a flat surface
Procedure =
1. Gather all materials
2. Spin a bouncy ball for 20 seconds
3. Let go of the ball and time how long it takes the ball to stop spinning
4. Spin the same bouncy ball for 10 seconds
5. Let go and time how long it takes the ball to stop spinning
6. Repeat steps 2-5 5 times
7. Record data
8. Clean up
Variables =
Constant variable = same ball, same surface, same person timing.
Independent variable = how long the ball is spun
Dependant variable = how long does the ball continue spinning after it has been let go off.
Constant = same ball
Observation = In our Friction experiment I spun the balls each trial for the given amount of time and recorded how long the balls continued spinning. I preformed this task 5 times and got constant results each time that the balls in general stopped spinning in around the same amount of time.
Conclusion = In conclusion my Hypothesis was incorrect when I sated that the 20 second ball would spin longer because I thought it would pick up speed but I kept the spinning power the same each time so at the time the ball was stopped being spun the ball of the 20 second spin and 10 second spin were both going the same speed therefore they stopped spinning in the same amount of time. Both balls stopped spinning in 3.8 seconds on average therefore my results were content. The only true external variable I may have had was that the ball sometimes fell of the table when it was spun but if it did that I started over so that did not make a difference.
Proficiency 2 explanation
To show how Friction and gravity applies to Newton’s laws I preformed two experiments. To show how gravity applies to Newton’s I used one of Newton’s own experiments, the experiment that shows two balls of different weight being dropped at the same time and hitting the ground at the same time. You may have heard of this experiment from when it was tested on the moon a few years ago. Just as Sr. Isaac Newton predicted both balls hit the ground at the same time. To show how Friction Applies to Newton’s laws I by spinning a ball for 20 seconds and seeing how long it took to stop and for 10 seconds seeing how long it took to stop showing how the friction on the bottom of the ball slows it down. The balls did not stop at different time periods because the balls were spinning at the same rate (T = D/R). I was able to perform the experiments with little external variables making my results very accurate.
Prociciancy 4
To experiment and explain how simple machines utilize mechanical advantage to transfer energy I will build a Rube Goldberg Machine with Isaac Lodise and explain how each of the simple machines use mechanical advantage to transfer the ball we will use to the end of the machine.
Prof. 4
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
3:57 PM
In the Rube Goldberg that Isaac and myself built we use mechanical advantage in our machine by using each one of our 6 simple machines. We start our machine by using a wheel and axle to spin a marble our of a cup. The wheel and axle uses mechanical advantage by spinning the ball out creating the ball to travel forward faster than if we were to just drop it. Secondly once the marble drops it falls into a pulley that makes a separate marble fall out. Again the pulley creates a smother transfer in energy from one marble to the next where as the two balls simply hitting each other would not be as smooth. Thirdly we have a screw that the ball travels through to create acceleration increasing mechanical advantage. Same thing for our inclined plane, it is slanted therefore the ball picks up even more speed. The ball is then slowed down by a wedge because if it goes to fast it may fall of the machine. Lastly it hits a lever with a needle on the end to make a balloon pop. The lever increases mechanical advantage by using a fulcrum.
Proficiancy 5
To affectively explain how alternate forms of energy can be utilized to influence United States Energy needs I will calculate and explain how much energy would be saved if you switched 100 regular light blabs to 100 florescent light blabs.
Every day there is energy being used that does not need to be used. Some things include leaving water running or keeping the T.V. on but one huge energy mistake that Americans are making is using regular light blabs instead of Florescent ones. Florescent light blabs are light blabs that give out the same amount of light than regular light blabs. Although hardly anyone owns florescent light blabs in America, Americans can save over $22 per year if they switch to a florescent light blab. For every florescent light blab you buy you will gain back you money in 2 years and they can last for up to 15,000 hours.
The florescent light bulb was invented by Peter Cooper Hewitt in the late 1890s but is was not introduced until the 1939 worlds fair in New York. Since then the light bulbs have been used to help with the 1973 oil crisis and have been sold in counties around the world particularly to China. The bulbs save energy by using something called a CFL power source. The CFL power is a mixture of alternating and direct currant witch is a currant often used in recreational vehicles. Not only can the CFL power be put into florescent light bulbs they can also be made to fit into street lights witch is another way for Americans to same a ton of Money. But the money doesn't stop there CFL power is hot therefore it is also a way of heating.
As I was reading about these more efficient ways of power I was shocked at how little Americans actually own these bulbs. At a first glance florescent light bulbs can be 3 to 10 times as expensive as regular ones so I think people are hesitant to get them, but if us Americans look forward in the long run by investing in CFL power I think Americas energy needs would be much, much easier to handle.
