Purpose:
The purpose of this lab is to explore some of the features of projectile motion. In this lab you will use your understanding of projectile motion to characterize a launching mechanism. Using this information you will then make the needed calculations to determine where to place the target bucket relative to a starting position I will determine.
Procedure:
You will need the following items: your Jupytlab notebook, a spring launcher, and meter sticks. As always in lab you will need your minds (or at least some significant portion thereof ). A special note for this lab!!! BE AWARE OF THE SAFETY OF YOUR CLASSMATES! There will be some objects flying around and people could get hurt. Irresponsible behavior will be reflected in your grade.
- 1) Place the launcher on one of the counters. Launch the ball horizontally into the sand tray to protect the floor. By making appropriate measurements determine the initial velocity of the ball. Repeat these measurements 6-8 times to assess the variability of this determination. No other apparatus will be needed. Confirm your result with a plot in your notebook.
- 2) The launcher will then be adjusted to launch at some angle with respect to the horizontal and from a different height. We will probably generate that angle randomly for each group. The task before you is to determine where to place the target object so that the ball will land where you predict. Do this both algebraically and using the plotting tools in your notebook. You will be permitted three attempts to allow for misfires but no adjustment of your launcher. Success (getting within 10 cm) will get each member of your group 5 extra points for use elsewhere in the course. In order to keep things fair each group will be dealing with slightly different launchers.
- 3) The following hints may
be useful:
- i) What is critical that you need to know about the physical situation?
- ii) How does the counter height affect the distance the ball goes?
- iii) What are the uncertainties in your setup?
- iv) Can you minimize the effects of these uncertainties?
LAB DELIVERABLES:
I) Describe the process by which you determined the initial velocity of the ball. Show your data and your calculations and reference the plot of this setting that you created in your notebook with all appropriate labels. The equations that you use to calculate the flight time and initial velocity need to be presented clearly (using LaTeX) in the markdown cell for this part of the lab.
II) Based on your data (multiple measurements), determine the variability in your determination of the initial velocity using tools we have previously developed in this course. Express this variability quantitatively (in numbers!).
III) Present your data, calculations, and physics model (plot) for the challenge portion of the experiment. Exactly how did you determine where to draw the line in the sand and how did you choose to position the sandbox/target object? Your goal is effective communication of the process you used. Your plot should include multiple objects representing the greatest range and least range you would expect based on the variability described in part II.
