Resistors in Series and Parallels Lab

1. Evaluate the differences between theoretical and experimental values.

Theoretical values are the values calculated before that you could possibly get and the experimental values come from the data you gather from the experiment. With our experiment, there seemed to be a difference between the theoretical and experimental values for some of the circuits we made.

2. Make some general statements of what you learned about circuits in series, in parallel, series-parallel, and parallel-series networks.

Series circuits are very simple to make because you only have to create one path for the current. Parallel circuits are more complex because, with them, you create more than one path for the current to move through. When the circuits included both parallel and series, they would sometimes get confusing and hard to build. 

3.Discuss other sources of error such as the effect of adding a voltmeter and ammeter in a circuit and not including internal resistance in the battery in your calculations.

The voltmeter was very simple to use, so there were no drastic errors in the voltage calculations of the circuit. The ammeter, however, could have been a source of error because sometimes we had a bit of trouble finding out the exact places to put it. Also, if you connect the positive and negative wires into the wrong areas, you would get an incorrect reading and you would have to switch them. Also, not having the wires connected correctly would be a source of error. If you don't include the internal resistance in the battery, the theoretical and experimental values are more similar.

Electric Field Hockey Post-Game Analysis

1. Which direction do electric field lines point for positive charges?

The field lines point away from the positive charge

2. Which direction do electric field lines point for negative charges?

The field lines point towards the negative charge

3. What do the direction and strength of the field lines indicate for the (positively

charged) “puck?”

For the positively charged puck, the direction and strength of the field lines indicate the acceleration

4. Did the (positively charged) puck always move in the same direction as the field lines

it was passing over?

The positively charged puck wouldn't always move in the same direction as the field lines

5. What happened (or would happen) if you changed the charge of the puck from

positive to negative?

If you were to change the charge of the puck from positive to negative you would change the direction of the field lines from facing away from the charge to facing towards the charge

6. What happened when you increased the mass of the puck?

The puck would move slower

7. How did the distance between the puck and the particles affect the motion of the

puck?

The closer the puck would get, the faster it would get.

8. List two or three cool things you got the puck to do. Why did each one happen?

When I put two negative charges directly next to each other, the puck would bounce in opposite directions before swinging to the next negative charge.

I managed to get the puck into the goal by making it have a positive charge and putting a negative charge on to the lower right of it and a positive charge to the top right of it. It was repelled by the positive charge so it went down to the negative charge, swung around, and hit the goal.

I put a negative charge directly to the right of the positively charged puck. Then I surrounded it with four positive charges. The puck ended up moving back and forth on the negative charge in a circular rotation.

9. The field lines on the program are evenly spaced, with darker shades of grey indicating

a stronger field. This is a very clear way of presenting this information. However, it is

not what we will normally use. Why do you think that is?

It might not be completely accurate

Toothpick Project Progress

More Fun with Waves Lab

Part 3: Interference of Transverse Waves

1. If the two wave pulses are on the same side of the spring, what happens when the two waves meet in the middle of the spring? 
• When the two wave pulses meet in the middle they bounce back to the directions they came from.
2. If the two wave pulses are on opposite sides of the spring describe what happens when they meet in the middle of the spring.
• When the two wave pulses meet in the middle, they bounce back and change the side they were originally on. 

Part 4: Periodic Transverse Waves

1. How does the length of the waves that you produce depend on how fast you are vibrating your hand?
• When you vibrate your hand faster, you get shorter waves and when you vibrate your hand slower, you get longer waves.
2. Does the speed at which the wave travels down the spring depend on how fast you are vibrating your hand?
• We timed the waves three times and used the average of the three to find the velocity. When we calculated the velocity of the fast vibration we got 5.85 m/s, and when we calculated the velocity of the slow vibration we got 5.63 m/s. From our data, it seems that the speed is slightly more when you vibrate your hand fast, but I think that to be more accurate, we should've done more trials.

Part 5: Standing Waves

1. Record the time it takes to complete ten cycles. Calculate the  frequency, period, wavelength, and speed of the wave. (One Hump)
• Time: 19.12 seconds
• Frequency: 0.52 Hz
• Period: 1.912s
• Wavelength: 1.21m
• Speed: 0.628 m/s
2. Record the time it takes for the wave to complete ten cycles. Calculate the frequency, period, wavelength, and speed of the wave. (Two Humps)
• Time: 9.41 seconds
• Frequency: 1.063 Hz
• Period: 0.941s
• Wavelength: 1.204m
• Speed: 1.28 m/s
3. Record the time it takes for the wave to complete ten cycles. Calculate the frequency, period, wavelength, and speed of the wave. (Three Humps)
• Time: 4.60
• Frequency: 2.17 Hz
• Period: 0.46s
• Wavelength: 1.203m
• Speed:  2.61 m/s

Intro to Waves Lab

1. Describe in words and drawings what you see after releasing the spring.
• There seems to be a wave that bounces back and forth and how how far it goes depends on how much you compress it.
2. What happens to the wave when it reaches the other end of the spring?
• It bounces back.
3. Describe in words and drawings what you see after releasing the spring.
• The wave hits goes towards the other end and it creates a kind of dent as it passes along the spring.
4. Describe in words and drawings what happens to the waves when it reaches the other end of the spring.
• The wave hits the other end and bounces back, but it never comes completely back, it seems to fade away somewhere in the middle of the spring.
5. Does the size of the wave change as it travels along the spring? Describe both its amplitude and wavelength.
• Yes it does. After it hits the other end, the size of the wave gets a lot smaller. As you increase the amplitude, the waves get bigger, and when you decrease it, the waves get smaller. The wavelength seems to stay the same.
6. Do you think changing the amplitude of the wave will change the velocity?
• No it doesn't.
7. Do you think changing the wavelength will change its velocity?
• No, it doesn't change the velocity.
8. Do you think stretching or shortening the length of the spring will change its velocity?
• Stretching or shortening the spring length can make it either faster or slower. To make it slower, you make it shorter, and to make it faster, you make it longer.

Projectile Motion Video Analysis Lab

Graph of x-position vs. time with best fit line:

1.      Equations that describe the x-position vs. time

y    The equation of the best fit line is y = 0.9120x - 0.06167. The slope tells us the velocity of the ball.  

y

2.      Description of the horizontal motion

     When the ball is thrown horizontally, there is actually no acceleration if there is no air resistance. 

      Graph of y-position vs. time with best fit line:

 

     

      7.     What can you say about the rate of change of the y-velocity as a function of time? How does the value of the slope of the linear fits compare to the acceleration of a freely falling object?

          The y-velocity changes as time passes. It will increase until the ball reaches the floor and then as it bounces again, the y-velocity will be less than what it was in the previous bounce. The slope of the linear fit is constant and negative so the acceleration would be constant.

8.     Explain the differences in the horizontal and vertical components of the motion of the projectile in terms of the force(s) acting on it after it was launched.

      The horizontal component remains constant throughout the whole thing. The vertical component initially starts at 0m/s but then accelerates and decelerates at a rate of 9.8m/s^2.

Acceleration Lab: Speeding Up and Slowing Down

The position graph displayed by the motion detector was positive; it stayed constant then increased and then stayed constant again. The slope of this graph represents the velocity of the object.

The velocity graph was positive since it slightly increased over time. The slope of this graph represents the acceleration of the object.

The acceleration graph was also positive, and like the velocity graph, it only slightly increased.