Marcu Dinut Mr. Kopecky Science Period 2 21 January 2025 Formal Lab Report - Motion and Speed Prompt : You and your team will design and implement an experiment that measures the motion and speed of an object and generates data for the independent variable and dependent variable. Background information : On January 10th, Our Science Teacher, Mr. Kopecky, created an assignment. The assignment was a lab on motion and speed. Motion is a key concept in physics, which is describing an object's change in position overtime. Motion is observed everywhere, any and every movement represents motion. This includes marbles rolling down a ramp. Understanding motion however still needs several concepts, like speed, velocity, acceleration, momentum, mass, weight, gravity, friction, and air resistance. For more clarity, our lab is testing out five different sized marbles, and timing how fast they move down the metal pipe. Motion : Motion is defined as a change in an object's position in correlation to its surroundings during a set period of time. It is usually described in terms of displacement, which is the change in position of an object. Motion can be in linear (straight), rotational (circular), or both. In this experiment, we test linear motion, as marbles travel down a metal pipe. Speed : Speed is the measure of how fast an object is moving. It is defined as the distance traveled by an object - per unit of time. A formula used for calculating speed is “Speed = Distance/Time.” In this experiment, we measured the time it took for marbles to travel a fixed distance (the length of the metal pipe), which thus allows us to calculate the speeds of each of our objects. Velocity : Velocity is similar to speed, but it is a vector quantity. A vector quantity simply just means it has both speed and direction. Velocity is different from speed because velocity includes direction (up, down, left, right, west, east, north, and south are some examples), or magnitude (same meaning). For example, a car traveling at 60 mph north has a different velocity than a car traveling 60 mph east. Even though the speed was the same, the direction was different, and thus having a different velocity. In our experiment, our velocity of the marbles was directed down the slope of the metal pipe, in which the metal pipe was propelled upwards by a cardboard box. Acceleration : Acceleration is the rate of a change of velocity over time. It represents how fast an object’s velocity is changing, in either speed or direction, or both. The formula for acceleration is “Acceleration = Change in Velocity / Time.” An object can accelerate by speeding up, slowing down (deceleration), or changing direction. In our experiment, we hypothesized that the marbles would accelerate as they moved down the pipe because of gravity. Momentum : Momentum is a measure of an object’s mass in motion. Momentum is figured out by multiplying an object's mass and its velocity. The formula “Momentum = Mass x Velocity.” represents momentum the best. Momentum is also a vector quantity (having both speed and direction) and is mainly used for calculating collisions between objects. For example, a heavier object will have a greater momentum than a lighter object if they have the same velocity. Mass : Mass is the matter inside an object. It is often measured in kilograms. Mass is different from weight, as mass never changed. Weight : Weight is the force of gravity on an object’s mass. It is expressed in Newtons. Unlike mass, weight can change depending on how much gravity there is. The formula for weight is “Weight = Mass x Gravity.” On earth, the acceleration due to gravity is 9.8 N (Newtons). Gravity : Gravity is a force of attraction that exists between any two objects with mass. On earth, gravity pulls every object toward the center of the planet, causing them to fall downwards. It was the force of gravity that made the marbles accelerate down the metal pipe in our experiment of testing. Friction : Friction is a force that opposes motion between two surfaces in contact. It goes in the opposite direction of motion, causing objects to slow down or completely stop an object from moving. Friction is applied as a “stopping” or even “decelerating” force for any two objects touching each other. For example, there might be friction from marbles going down the pipe, however friction is limited in our experiment due to the smoothness of the metal pipe, and the amount of gravity being applied. Air Resistance : Air resistance is a type of friction that opposes the motion of an object, except it opposes the motion of an object through the air. It is caused when an object collides with air molecules. Air resistance really depends on size, shape, and speed. In our experiment, we hypothesized that smaller marbles would experience less air resistance, and thus move faster. Credit: ( Purpose : Why did we study the topic of motion and speed? We studied this topic because we wanted to know how speed, motion, and acceleration works from real life objects like marbles. It is important to know these topics because it is applied to daily life, from a car moving, or just walking around. We can apply these topics and knowledge to real life practical situations, like knowing acceleration and applying it to how our body functions when we run. Another thing we can apply is momentum, when a moving object collides with a still object. Engineers study motion to calculate items like rockets, or even simple objects to project and plan out trajectories of what will happen to the items they are studying. Scientists also study motion to figure out how molecules and atoms move in relation to energy, and therefore speed, motion, and reaction. Materials : In our experiment, we used a one meter metal pipe, five different types of marbles in different sizes, a stopwatch, two humans (to record data), paper, pencil, and a cardboard box to prop up the metal pipe. Hypothesis : I think the smaller marbles will accelerate faster due to less air resistance and mass, therefore going at a faster rate than the bigger marbles going from a one meter metal pipe. Variables : Our independent variable was marble size. Our dependent variable was measuring how fast the marbles can go down from a one meter sized pipe. We do not have a control variable. Our constants are our metal pipe, cardboard box, stopwatch, same temperature, and same air resistance (indoors). Procedure : We first arranged the metal pipe on a cardboard box at a 50% slope or grade, or 50 degree angle. We used five different types of marbles (1 cm, 2 cm, 3 cm, 4 cm, 5 cm) and used a stopwatch to measure the data. One person was used to release the marble down the ramp, and one was used to record the data. A pencil was used to write down the times on a piece of paper. Data 1 cm Marble 1.42 seconds 1.73 seconds 1.27 seconds 1.47 seconds (average) 2 cm Marble 1.29 seconds 1.63 seconds 1.97 seconds 1.62 seconds (average 3 cm Marble 1.52 seconds 1.76 seconds 1.83 seconds 1.70 seconds (average) 4 cm Marble 1.74 seconds 1.63 seconds 1.87 seconds 1.75 seconds (average) 5 cm Marble 1.83 seconds 1.79 seconds 1.94 seconds 1.85 seconds (average) The 1 cm marble had an on average faster time than the heavier marbles due to higher acceleration and less mass. The 5 cm marble went faster due to its air resistance, and because the marble started spinning, which slowed down its pace. The average time for the 1 cm marble was rounded to 1.47 seconds, the average time for the 2 cm marble was rounded to 1.62 seconds, the average time for the 3 cm marble was 1.70 seconds, the average time for the 4 cm marble was rounded to 1.75 seconds, and the average time for the 5 cm marbles was 1.85 seconds. In order to calculate the averages, we added all three times and then divided the time by three to get the average time.