During the associated lesson, students have learned about Newton's three laws of …
During the associated lesson, students have learned about Newton's three laws of motion and free-body diagrams and have identified the forces of thrust, drag and gravity. As students begin to understand the physics behind thrust, drag and gravity and how these relate these to Newton's three laws of motion, groups assemble and launch the rockets that they designed in the associated lesson. The height of the rockets, after constructed and launched, are measured and compared to the theoretical values calculated during the rocket lesson. Effective teamwork and attention to detail is key for successful launches.
This activity is a guided inquiry activity where students take simple measurements …
This activity is a guided inquiry activity where students take simple measurements and use unit analysis to determine the thickness of a sheet of aluminum foil, the volume of an aluminum atom, and the radius of an aluminum atom.
The egg-drop activity is designed to help students develop a deeper understanding …
The egg-drop activity is designed to help students develop a deeper understanding of the force created by wind resistance and how it interacts with the force due to Gravity. Students will note how surface area affects the resistance of a falling object as Gravity works on it. Students will record and share observations and questions regarding the experiment.
This video introduces the concept of inertia by having students think about …
This video introduces the concept of inertia by having students think about how the balls moves in soccer. It explains that anytime there is a change in motion it is due to a force, and inertia is what keeps an object sitting still or moving at a constant speed. There is a summary of the important information at the end, a list of essential vocabulary, and a quiz of the information from the video. This would be a great way to introduce and reinforce a lesson on inertia.
In the first of two lessons of this curricular unit, students are …
In the first of two lessons of this curricular unit, students are introduced to the concept of friction as a force that impedes motion when two surfaces are in contact. Student teams use spring scales to drag objects, such as a ceramic coffee cup, along a table top or the floor, measuring the frictional force that exists between the moving object and the surface it slides on. By modifying the bottom surface of the object, students find out what kinds of surfaces generate more or less friction. They also discover that both static and kinetic friction are involved when an object initially at rest is caused to slide across a surface. In the second lesson of the unit, students design and conduct experiments to determine the effects of weight and surface area on friction. They discover that weight affects normal friction (the friction that results from surface roughness), but for very smooth surfaces, the friction due to molecular attraction is affected by contact area.
Use this activity to explore forces acting on objects, practice graphing experimental …
Use this activity to explore forces acting on objects, practice graphing experimental data, and introduce the algebra concepts of slope and intercept of a line. A wooden 2 x 4 beam is set on top of two scales. Students learn how to conduct an experiment by applying loads at different locations along the beam, recording the exact position of the applied load and the reaction forces measured by the scales at each end of the beam. In addition, students analyze the experiment data with the use of a chart and a table, and model/graph linear equations to describe relationships between independent and dependent variables.
Explore the forces at work when you try to push a filing …
Explore the forces at work when you try to push a filing cabinet. Create an applied force and see the resulting friction force and total force acting on the cabinet. Charts show the forces, position, velocity, and acceleration vs. time. View a Free Body Diagram of all the forces (including gravitational and normal forces).
Explore the forces at work when you try to push a filing …
Explore the forces at work when you try to push a filing cabinet. Create an applied force and see the resulting friction force and total force acting on the cabinet. Charts show the forces, position, velocity, and acceleration vs. time. View a Free Body Diagram of all the forces (including gravitational and normal forces).
Explore the forces at work in a tug of war or pushing …
Explore the forces at work in a tug of war or pushing a refrigerator, crate, or person. Create an applied force and see how it makes objects move. Change friction and see how it affects the motion of objects.
Explore the forces at work when you try to push a filing …
Explore the forces at work when you try to push a filing cabinet. Create an applied force and see the resulting friction force and total force acting on the cabinet. Charts show the forces, position, velocity, and acceleration vs. time. View a Free Body Diagram of all the forces (including gravitational and normal forces).
Students conduct several simple lab activities to learn about the five fundamental …
Students conduct several simple lab activities to learn about the five fundamental load types that can act on structures: tension, compression, shear, bending and torsion. In this activity, students play the role of molecules in a beam that is subject to various loading schemes.
Educators use formative assessment to continually reflect and improve their skills related …
Educators use formative assessment to continually reflect and improve their skills related to these practices. The Formative Assessment video is a resource that can be used to support educators' professional development related to assessment literacy. Use the Video Supplement & Resource Guide to enhance your facilitation of this professional development opportunity.
Students model and design the sound environment for a room. They analyze …
Students model and design the sound environment for a room. They analyze the sound performance of different materials that represent wallpaper, thick curtains, and sound-absorbing panels. Then, referring to the results of their analysis, they design another room based on certain specifications, and test their designs.
Students learn about the Foucault pendulum an engineering tool used to demonstrate …
Students learn about the Foucault pendulum an engineering tool used to demonstrate and measure the Earth's rotation. Student groups create small experimental versions, each comprised of a pendulum and a video camera mounted on a rotating platform actuated by a LEGO MINDSTORMS(TM) NXT motor. When the platform is fixed, the pendulum motion forms a line, as observed in the recorded video. When the rotating, the pendulum's motion is observed as a set of spirals with a common center. Observing the patterns that the pendulum bob makes when the platform is rotating provides insight as to how a full-size Foucault pendulum operates. It helps students understand some of the physical phenomena induced by the Earth's rotation, as well as the tricky concept of how the perception of movement varies, depending on one's frame of reference.
Learn how to make waves of all different shapes by adding up …
Learn how to make waves of all different shapes by adding up sines or cosines. Make waves in space and time and measure their wavelengths and periods. See how changing the amplitudes of different harmonics changes the waves. Compare different mathematical expressions for your waves.
Learn how to make waves of all different shapes by adding up …
Learn how to make waves of all different shapes by adding up sines or cosines. Make waves in space and time and measure their wavelengths and periods. See how changing the amplitudes of different harmonics changes the waves. Compare different mathematical expressions for your waves.
This simulation shows the earth and allows students to choose a planet …
This simulation shows the earth and allows students to choose a planet or the moon to compare. Running the simulation allows students to compare the time needed to fall a certain distance on the earth with the time needed to fall the same distance on the planet (or Earth's moon).
Are you interested in investigating how nature engineers itself? How engineers copy …
Are you interested in investigating how nature engineers itself? How engineers copy the shapes found in nature ("biomimetics")? This Freshman Seminar investigates why similar shapes occur in so many natural things and how physics changes the shape of nature. Why are things in nature shaped the way they are? How do birds fly? Why do bird nests look the way they do? How do woodpeckers peck? Why can't trees grow taller than they are? Why is grass skinny and hollow? What is the wood science behind musical instruments? Questions such as these are the subject of biomimetic research and they have been the focus of investigation in this course for the past three years.
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