Internet Drop Simulation
To use the following worksheet you will need to go firstly to the student activities page on the class web site,
http://members.ozemail.com.au/~rdunlop/stuwkpg.htm
Once this page has loaded you will need to click on the link,
http://www.explorescience.com/activities/Activity_page.cfm?ActivityID=27
This is an online worksheet. It is found in your folder on Goldserver It can be copied and pasted as appropriate into the document that you will need to create.
For this activity you will need to create a document in Word. You can then copy and paste the graphs and sections of this worksheet into the document as required. To copy graphs from the simulation you will need to click on the following icon
Then move to your Word document and select paste. The size of the graphs can be changed so that more are able to be placed on each page.
Once you reach the simulation Internet site you will see a picture similar to that shown above. As you can see from the diagram many of the properties of the object and its surrounding environment can be changed by using the sliders on the screen. The graphs show what happens to the acceleration, velocity (speed) and position of the falling object as time passes after the object is dropped.
Investigation 1: Increasing the Mass of an Object with Air and without Air.
Change the Time (sec) value to 1.5. Change the air density setting to 0 (zero). Change the Distance, Velocity and Accel (acceleration) values to 1. Change the delta T (sec) to 0.01. This tells the program to do the calculations each 0.01 seconds and then draw an appropriate point on the graph. Release the ball. Don’t clear the trails from the screen but this time change the mass of the object to 0.1. Release the ball again. Copy the screen and paste into your word document. In your document make sure that you label the graph and cut, paste and complete the following. Bold text will need to be copied to your document and completed appropriately. Make sure that BOUNCE is OFF.
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1) When objects of different masses (weight) fall in an airless environment they fall in the same*/different* way(s). * delete the incorrect term
2) On the graph there a three lines each of a different colour. The Green Line represents the acceleration, a measure of the way an object increases its speed, the Red Line represents the velocity (speed) and the Blue Line represents the its position from the starting point.
The green horizontal line tells us that the acceleration of this object has increased*/decreased*/remained the same*. * delete the incorrect term
The red line is straight but sloping upwards. This indicated that the velocity (speed) is increasing*/decreasing*/remaining the same*. * delete the incorrect term
The blue line is curving upwards. This means that the object is moving away from the starting position evenly*/unevenly* with time. * delete the incorrect term
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Clear the trails and then repeat the drop. Allow the mass to remain at 0.1 kg but this time make the air density have a value of 1.2 kg/m3 . This is the normal air density. Don’t clear trails. Drop the ball. Copy and paste the graph to your Word document. Make sure that you label the diagram. Alter its size so that it fits the page better. Copy, paste and complete the following.
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3) When air is present the acceleration of the object changes. Briefly describe how it has changed. (Type your answer here).
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To help you answer Q3 you may have already noticed that as you move the mouse over each line its coordinates are given to you. The coordinates represent the x-value (time) first and the y-value (acceleration, velocity or position) second. See diagram below.
Move the pointer over the curved green line and record the x and y values in the table below. Record values from the beginning middle and end of the line. Make sure that BOUNCE has been turned off. Copy and paste the following table into your word document.
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4)
Beginning / Middle / Endx-value (first)
y-value (second)
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Investigation 2: Increasing the Size of an Object with Air and without Air.
For this part of the investigation we will leave the mass of the object constant and vary the objects size. Firstly this will be done with no air present and then with air present.
Without Air: Leave the setting as for the previous experiment. The mass should be set at 0.1 kg. The air density should be set at zero. The radius of the object should remain at 0.1 m. Make sure that all the trails are cleared before you commence this section of your investigation. Once you have ensured that the settings are correct it is time to release the ball.
Repeat the experiment by setting the radius of the ball to 0.2m. Don’t clear the trails. Release the ball. Make a copy of the screen and paste it into your Word document. Cut the following from this document and paste it into yours. Complete where appropriate.
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5) When the radius of the ball is doubled and then it is dropped in an airless environment then the fall of the ball will be the same*/different* than it was when the radius was half the value.
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With Air: Change the radius of the ball to 0.01m and set the air density value to 1.2, normal air. Release the ball.
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6) When the radius of the ball is set to 0.01m the ball falls in a similar fashion to a ball in which other situation?
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Do NOT clear the trails. Now set the radius of the ball to 0.1 m. Release the ball. Copy and paste a screen image of the graph containing the two sets of data.
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7) How does the drop of the 0.1m ball compare to that of the 0.01 m ball. In your answer consider the differences in acceleration, velocity and position.
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Do NOT clear the trails. Now change the radius to 0.2 m. Release the ball. If the graph is becoming too cluttered clear the trails and repeat the 0.2 m radius drop.
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8) How would you describe the fall of the 0.2 m object compared to the 0.1 and 0.01m object when air is present. In your answer consider differences in acceleration, velocity (speed) and position.
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9) Summarise how changes in the mass (weight), radius alter the way in which objects fall in an environment that has air and one that has no air. Try to include terms such as acceleration, velocity (speed) and position from the starting point.