In this unit I learned about...
We started off learning about Newton's 1st Law of motion, which states that,
An object in motion will stay in motion, and an object at rest will stay at rest, unless acted on by an outside force
This meaning that once something is in a state of motion, it will continue to move unless something such as the force of gravity slows it down, or it hits a wall. An example of this is the classic trick of pulling a table cloth out from under plates. This demonstrates that the plates which are at rest want to continue being at rest even when the table cloth is pulled out from under them. We demonstrated this law during the hovercraft lab when we were at rest until we were pushed by our classmates, which was hard, because our mass was making it hard to leave the state of being in rest to being in motion. Once we were in motion we continued to move because there was nothing to stop us (the frictionless environment made it so that we didn't
slow down). This lab also touched on inertia, which is, the apparent resistance of an object to change its state if motion. Mass is the measure of inertia. During this lab, we also learned about equilibrium. At equilibrium, an object can either be moving at constant velocity or at rest. During the lab, the hovercraft was at equilibrium twice. In the picture of the 3 phases, phase 2 is an example of being at equilibrium, and then again when the hovercraft was completely stopped and at rest. During phase 1 and 3, the hovercraft was accelerating, while during phase 2, the hovercraft was at constant velocity. We learned that equilibrium is,
Force, which is a push or a pull, is measured in Newtons. The Net force is the total force, every push or pull adds up to make the total net force. For example, in the picture with the 2 pink people pushing the box in opposite directions, you subtract the 10N that are being pushed to the right, minus the 10N being pushed to the left to get a net force of 0N. So in this case, the net force is 0N which is equilibrium. In another example, the 2 orange people pushing the box left with 10N and right with 15N will have a net force of 5N. To get 5N, I subtracted the 15 minus the 10 to get 5N which is not equilibrium. Anytime there is a net force on something, it means it is accelerating. An example of this is when a box is being pushed with 50N to the left, and 50N to the right. The net force of the box is 0N, but that doesn't mean the box isn't accelerating. This just means that the box is either at rest or moving at constant velocity. I found interesting that during the hovercraft lab, we learned that it is possible to be accelerating in one direction, but being forced in the other direction. This is possible when a car comes to a stop, and involves Newton's first law: Since the car is in motion and suddenly comes to a stop, people in the car lurch forward because they are in a state of motion and are going forward while the force of the car stopping is making them stop. This happened when our classmates stopped us when we were on the hovercraft. An ilistration is shown below in the third example.
After learning about Newton's 1st Law, equilibrium, net force, inertia and acceleration, we moved on to learn about speed and velocity. This is where we learned our first equation for speed:
Speed = Distance (s = d)
Time t
Speed and velocity are the same thing in the sense that they both are measured in distance over time, but velocity is different because it requires a specific direction. Arrows are used to know the direction of how great the velocity is, while speed doesn't need arrows. You can have the same speed, but not the same velocity because of the direction. A change in the direction means a change in velocity which means is is accelerating. And with that, we learned another equation. The next equation we learned was for acceleration,
Acceleration = Change in Velocity (a = Δv)
Time Interval t
In order to get the change in velocity, there must be one of three: changing direction, speeding up, slowing down. All of which are acceleration because they happen over a time interval. Change in velocity is found by subtracting the initial velocity by the finial velocity. In the picture to the left, there is a ramp that goes down straight. In this diagram, the ball starts off at 0m/s and as it rolls down the ramp, it picks up speed, going from 0 to 2 to 4 to 6m/s. This speed is consistent, meaning that as the ball rolls down, it is picking up speed covering a larger amount of distance per second but increasing in a uniform way, 2m/s^2. This is called constant acceleration. In the next diagram, the ramp is curved. The ball once again starts off at 0m/s, but as it continues to roll, it again increases speed just not as consistent as the previous ramp. This ramp goes from 0 to 8 to 12 to 13, meaning that it still increasing speed, but now picking up speed slower, increasing by 8m/s^2 the 1st second and only 4m/s^2 the 2nd second, and then only 1m/s^2 increase the 3rd second. This is an example of decreasing acceleration.
The last 2 equations are for constant acceleration: how fast and object is going, and how far it goes,
V = at and d = (1/2)at^2
We used these equations for or 2nd lab on "Comparing Constant Velocity to Constant Acceleration". We used a flat surface to roll a marble starting from 0m/s. On the flat surface, the marble rolled consistently covering the same amount of distance every 1/2 second demonstrating constant velocity. In the next experiment, we rolled the marble on a tilted surface and made a mark every 1/2 second. This time, the marble continued to pick up speed. Every half second, the marble was covering an increasing distance. This demonstrated constant acceleration. In the first chart to the right, the data represents the marble that was rolled on a flat surface. It shows how it was staying at a constant speed on average, covering the same amount of distance every half second. In the chart to the left, there is data for the marble that was rolled on a tilted surface. This data shows how the marble was increasing its speed every half second.
In this lab, we also learned about the equation for a straight line, where y = units on y axis, m = slope (change in y/ change in x), x = units on a axis, and b = where the line crosses the y axis,
y = mx + b
Reflection on the unit, I put together all of the equations that involve finding constant velocity, constant acceleration and acceleration,
What I have found difficult about what I've studied is...
Comprehending the concept of inertia, it had been a struggle to understand completely what inertia is and how it is supposed to be used. During class I have had to ask classmates and Mrs. Lawrence, and it did not click until we were assigned a podcast about inertia. My group prepared a video explaining inertia and it helped me when I heard it coming from my group, putting it into words and then into a video. I also watched other students podcasts about inertia in other classes and it helped me to get a more solid idea of what inertia is and how I can apply it to everyday life.
I have found that during physics thus far, I have been able to apply my skills and effort in a way that has benefited for the most part. During labs and class discussions, I have been able to ask questions and contribute my ideas in order for myself and my classmates to understand the material more deeply. During problem solving questions, I have tried to persist in order to find the right answer, but I have struggled a little in the way I apply what I have learned to the question. But, during class, I am able to apply what I have learned, and put it into words to help classmates to understand it. So, something I need to work on is the way I apply what I have learned into the way I work to find answers. Something I have done a great job in this year is using my self confidence in class to work around difficult things in labs and in group activities. I have shown confidence and taken charge in situations and have been able to work around difficult questions. This confidence has helped me to collaborate with group members, and this has helped in getting things done. My goals for next unit will be to be more persistent and pay attention to details, something I struggled with when trying to complete the acceleration problem solving worksheet. Striving for good problem solving skills is something I hope will be accomplished next unit, which will help my understanding of physics as well.
Connections to the real world..
This past weekend I had an unexpected run in with Newton's first law. I had put my rubbish in a trash bag and placed it in the corner. I then began vacuuming my room. I meant to nudge the trash bag further in the corner in order to vacuum more area, but instead, the vacuum sucked up the trash bag and left all my rubbish on the floor. I related this to Newton's first law because my trash bag and rubbish were at rest in the corner until a force came (the vacuum) and sucked up the bag, making it leave its state of rest. The rubbish continued to stay in a state of rest even when the bag was moved, therefore, the rubbish was not sucked into the vacuum along with the bag, it simple stayed at rest and all fell to the floor, demonstrating inertia which is a property of motion.
We started off learning about Newton's 1st Law of motion, which states that,
An object in motion will stay in motion, and an object at rest will stay at rest, unless acted on by an outside force
This meaning that once something is in a state of motion, it will continue to move unless something such as the force of gravity slows it down, or it hits a wall. An example of this is the classic trick of pulling a table cloth out from under plates. This demonstrates that the plates which are at rest want to continue being at rest even when the table cloth is pulled out from under them. We demonstrated this law during the hovercraft lab when we were at rest until we were pushed by our classmates, which was hard, because our mass was making it hard to leave the state of being in rest to being in motion. Once we were in motion we continued to move because there was nothing to stop us (the frictionless environment made it so that we didn'tslow down). This lab also touched on inertia, which is, the apparent resistance of an object to change its state if motion. Mass is the measure of inertia. During this lab, we also learned about equilibrium. At equilibrium, an object can either be moving at constant velocity or at rest. During the lab, the hovercraft was at equilibrium twice. In the picture of the 3 phases, phase 2 is an example of being at equilibrium, and then again when the hovercraft was completely stopped and at rest. During phase 1 and 3, the hovercraft was accelerating, while during phase 2, the hovercraft was at constant velocity. We learned that equilibrium is,
When something is moving at constant velocity or at rest, the net force adds up to 0 Newtons.
Force, which is a push or a pull, is measured in Newtons. The Net force is the total force, every push or pull adds up to make the total net force. For example, in the picture with the 2 pink people pushing the box in opposite directions, you subtract the 10N that are being pushed to the right, minus the 10N being pushed to the left to get a net force of 0N. So in this case, the net force is 0N which is equilibrium. In another example, the 2 orange people pushing the box left with 10N and right with 15N will have a net force of 5N. To get 5N, I subtracted the 15 minus the 10 to get 5N which is not equilibrium. Anytime there is a net force on something, it means it is accelerating. An example of this is when a box is being pushed with 50N to the left, and 50N to the right. The net force of the box is 0N, but that doesn't mean the box isn't accelerating. This just means that the box is either at rest or moving at constant velocity. I found interesting that during the hovercraft lab, we learned that it is possible to be accelerating in one direction, but being forced in the other direction. This is possible when a car comes to a stop, and involves Newton's first law: Since the car is in motion and suddenly comes to a stop, people in the car lurch forward because they are in a state of motion and are going forward while the force of the car stopping is making them stop. This happened when our classmates stopped us when we were on the hovercraft. An ilistration is shown below in the third example.
After learning about Newton's 1st Law, equilibrium, net force, inertia and acceleration, we moved on to learn about speed and velocity. This is where we learned our first equation for speed:
Speed = Distance (s = d)
Time t
Speed and velocity are the same thing in the sense that they both are measured in distance over time, but velocity is different because it requires a specific direction. Arrows are used to know the direction of how great the velocity is, while speed doesn't need arrows. You can have the same speed, but not the same velocity because of the direction. A change in the direction means a change in velocity which means is is accelerating. And with that, we learned another equation. The next equation we learned was for acceleration,
Acceleration = Change in Velocity (a = Δv)
Time Interval t
In order to get the change in velocity, there must be one of three: changing direction, speeding up, slowing down. All of which are acceleration because they happen over a time interval. Change in velocity is found by subtracting the initial velocity by the finial velocity. In the picture to the left, there is a ramp that goes down straight. In this diagram, the ball starts off at 0m/s and as it rolls down the ramp, it picks up speed, going from 0 to 2 to 4 to 6m/s. This speed is consistent, meaning that as the ball rolls down, it is picking up speed covering a larger amount of distance per second but increasing in a uniform way, 2m/s^2. This is called constant acceleration. In the next diagram, the ramp is curved. The ball once again starts off at 0m/s, but as it continues to roll, it again increases speed just not as consistent as the previous ramp. This ramp goes from 0 to 8 to 12 to 13, meaning that it still increasing speed, but now picking up speed slower, increasing by 8m/s^2 the 1st second and only 4m/s^2 the 2nd second, and then only 1m/s^2 increase the 3rd second. This is an example of decreasing acceleration.The last 2 equations are for constant acceleration: how fast and object is going, and how far it goes,
V = at and d = (1/2)at^2
We used these equations for or 2nd lab on "Comparing Constant Velocity to Constant Acceleration". We used a flat surface to roll a marble starting from 0m/s. On the flat surface, the marble rolled consistently covering the same amount of distance every 1/2 second demonstrating constant velocity. In the next experiment, we rolled the marble on a tilted surface and made a mark every 1/2 second. This time, the marble continued to pick up speed. Every half second, the marble was covering an increasing distance. This demonstrated constant acceleration. In the first chart to the right, the data represents the marble that was rolled on a flat surface. It shows how it was staying at a constant speed on average, covering the same amount of distance every half second. In the chart to the left, there is data for the marble that was rolled on a tilted surface. This data shows how the marble was increasing its speed every half second.In this lab, we also learned about the equation for a straight line, where y = units on y axis, m = slope (change in y/ change in x), x = units on a axis, and b = where the line crosses the y axis,
y = mx + b
Reflection on the unit, I put together all of the equations that involve finding constant velocity, constant acceleration and acceleration,
What I have found difficult about what I've studied is...
Comprehending the concept of inertia, it had been a struggle to understand completely what inertia is and how it is supposed to be used. During class I have had to ask classmates and Mrs. Lawrence, and it did not click until we were assigned a podcast about inertia. My group prepared a video explaining inertia and it helped me when I heard it coming from my group, putting it into words and then into a video. I also watched other students podcasts about inertia in other classes and it helped me to get a more solid idea of what inertia is and how I can apply it to everyday life.
I have found that during physics thus far, I have been able to apply my skills and effort in a way that has benefited for the most part. During labs and class discussions, I have been able to ask questions and contribute my ideas in order for myself and my classmates to understand the material more deeply. During problem solving questions, I have tried to persist in order to find the right answer, but I have struggled a little in the way I apply what I have learned to the question. But, during class, I am able to apply what I have learned, and put it into words to help classmates to understand it. So, something I need to work on is the way I apply what I have learned into the way I work to find answers. Something I have done a great job in this year is using my self confidence in class to work around difficult things in labs and in group activities. I have shown confidence and taken charge in situations and have been able to work around difficult questions. This confidence has helped me to collaborate with group members, and this has helped in getting things done. My goals for next unit will be to be more persistent and pay attention to details, something I struggled with when trying to complete the acceleration problem solving worksheet. Striving for good problem solving skills is something I hope will be accomplished next unit, which will help my understanding of physics as well.
Connections to the real world..
This past weekend I had an unexpected run in with Newton's first law. I had put my rubbish in a trash bag and placed it in the corner. I then began vacuuming my room. I meant to nudge the trash bag further in the corner in order to vacuum more area, but instead, the vacuum sucked up the trash bag and left all my rubbish on the floor. I related this to Newton's first law because my trash bag and rubbish were at rest in the corner until a force came (the vacuum) and sucked up the bag, making it leave its state of rest. The rubbish continued to stay in a state of rest even when the bag was moved, therefore, the rubbish was not sucked into the vacuum along with the bag, it simple stayed at rest and all fell to the floor, demonstrating inertia which is a property of motion.
