This activity enables students to calculate the speed of sound in a laboratory setting.
This online game activity allows the learners to calculate their carbon footprint using a French language calculator developed by a Swiss environmental organization. Students will describe their results in French and engage in related expansion activities for the language class.
Calculus-Based Physics is an introductory physics textbook designed for use in the two-semester introductory physics course typically taken by science and engineering students.
Calculus-Based Physics is an introductory physics textbook designed for use in the two-semester introductory physics course typically taken by science and engineering students
Do you know how many calories are in a macadamia nut? This video segment highlighting a Calorimetry experiment will give you the answer.
This activity is a chance for students to apply the diffraction grating equation m*Λ/d = Θ to solve a real life problem: find the wavelength of given source of light. It is also useful for them to apply trigonometry to real life scenarios.
This activity is about planetary climate. Once familiar with the factors that determine a planet's surface temperature, learners will use an interactive spreadsheet model of a planet's atmosphere to determine if greenhouse gases, luminosity of the source, the distance of the planet from the source and the albedo of the planet can be manipulated so that the average surface temperature on Mars or Venus could support human life. Learners will then be asked to make some conclusions about these methods and suggest improvements for the spreadsheet model (see related resources for link to this model). The activity requires use of Microsoft Excel software. This is Activity D in the fourth module, titled "How do Atmospheres Affect Planetary Temperatures?," of "Earth Climate Course: What Determines a Planet's Climate?."
This lab demonstrates Ohm's law as students set up simple circuits each composed of a battery, lamp and resistor. Students calculate the current flowing through the circuits they create by solving linear equations. After solving for the current, I, for each set resistance value, students plot the three points on a Cartesian plane and note the line that is formed. They also see the direct correlation between the amount of current flowing through the lamp and its brightness.
This lesson introduces students to the concept of air pressure. Students will explore how air pressure creates force on an object. They will study the relationship between air pressure and the velocity of moving air.
By using the discrepant event of dropping a burning candle in a jar, students will predict, experiment, and discuss why the candle goes out as soon as it is caught.
This is an activity about classifying planetary characteristics. Learners will analyze the provided information about each planet in order to make graphs and Venn diagrams. Then, using both, learners will identify similarities and differences of the planets in the Solar System. This is Activity C-11 as part of The Universe At Your Fingertips curriculum, available for purchase.
Explore how a capacitor works! Change the size of the plates and add a dielectric to see how it affects capacitance. Change the voltage and see charges built up on the plates. Shows the electric field in the capacitor. Measure voltage and electric field.
Students are presented with a short lesson on the difference between cohesive forces (the forces that hold water molecules together and create surface tension) and adhesive forces (the forces that causes water to "stick" to solid surfaces. The interaction between cohesive forces and adhesive forces causes the well-known capillary action. Students are also introduced to examples of capillary action found in nature and in our day-to-day lives.
Students observe Pascal's law, Archimedes' principle and the ideal gas law as a Cartesian diver moves within a closed system. The Cartesian diver is neutrally buoyant and begins to sink when an external pressure is applied to the closed system. A basic explanation and proof of this process is provided in this activity, and supplementary ideas for more extensive demonstrations and independent group activities are presented.
Students are asked to design a Cartesian Diver from a list of materials. The lesson hand-out includes all materials needed, steps for construction, and list of resources to help with designing and understanding the concepts involved in the creation of the divers. The challenge is then to make three different divers that dive in a predicted order.
This activiy with cartesian divers introduces the gas laws in a high school chemisry class.
Students observe the relationship between the angle of a catapult (a force measurement) and the flight of a cotton ball. They learn how Newton's second law of motion works by seeing directly that F = ma. When they pull the metal "arm" back further, thus applying a greater force to the cotton ball, it causes the cotton ball to travel faster and farther. Students also learn that objects of greater mass require more force to result in the same distance traveled by a lighter object.
This activity is a controlled investigation of a catapult system.
This activity is a indoor lab where student gather data about centripital acceleration and write up a lab based on their findings.
This video segment explains centripetal force and illustrates how roller coasters rely on it to give you a thrilling ride.