Physics 105

January 29, 2003

Today we will continue our exploration of motion by focussing on the velocity of an object. Position, velocity, and acceleration are the three most commonly used parameters used to describe the motion of an object. To find out more about the definitions of these parameters, please refer to the course notes:

• Motion in one dimension.

We will first use our motion sensor to explore how the velocity and acceleration of an object (that is you) depends on the details of the motion. In order to explore the connections between position, velocity, and acceleration, open setup P00a, P00b, and P00c (choose the best one based on the experience you gained last week with these sensors). Use this setup to answer the following questions:

• what type of motion produces a positive velocity?
• what type of motion produces a negative velocity?
• what type of motion produces a positive acceleration?
• what type of motion produces a negative acceleration?

In order to to apply what we have learned about motion, we will try to reproduce a specific motion:

• Understanding motion I: distance and time (P01)
• Understanding motion II: velocity and time (P02)

The first lab report will be due on Monday February 3. The lab report should describe the results of your first measurements with the motion sensor (P00, P00a, P00b, P00c, P01, and P02). Use the guidelines in "How to write a lab report" as a starting point for your report. Make sure you included whatever graphs are needed to support your conclusions. Your lab report should at least include the following points:

• What is the maximum and minimum range of the motion sensor and how does it depend on the frequency of the sensor? Make sure you explain how you measured these minima and maxima.
• Is the motion sensor calibrated correctly? Is the position you measure, measured from the front face of the sensor?
• Make an estimate of the errors made in the measurements with the motion sensor. Are these errors dominated by the accuracy of the motion sensor or by the experimenter?

You can either hand in paper copies of your report or send them to me in electronic format via email.

Please note that "lab-hours" will be held this Friday between 12 pm and 1.50 pm.

© Frank L. H. Wolfs, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627, USA

Last updated on Monday, January 27, 2003 11:36