Physics Web Quest

In this post we searched the web to find answers on speed and acceleration.
1.) Instantaneous speed is speed at a particular instant in time while average speed is a measure of the distance traveled in a given period of time. You are reading the instantaneous speed of the car while reading the speedometer.
2.) Constant speed is when you go the same speed for a period of time. It would travel 300 meters.
3.) Acceleration is a vector quantity that is defined as the rate at which an object changes its velocity. The equation for acceleration is a=change in velocity/time. Three units for acceleration are m/s/s, mi/hr/s, km/hr,s. The answer is 28m/s.
4.) The slope of a position time graph is velocity. The velocity increases.
5.) -3m/s and 4m/s. You determine by subtracting final distance and initial distance divided by final time subtracted from initial time.
6.) The slope of a velocity time graph is acceleration. The line for acceleration will be going on a upward rightward slope, deceleration is going to be the opposite.
7.) It means the don't encounter air resistance. They free fall at a rate of 9.8 m/s/s.
8.) The velocity is increasing as it falls downward. It's accelerating is falling at 3.75 m/s/s.

 

Reflecting on Mousetrap Vehicle

I really like building and working on our mousetrap vehicle. What went well was how fast our vehicle would go off the start. We built our vehicle to win the drag race and we won it! We also liked how consistent it went. During the distance competition it would consistently go 4 meters but in the drag race we got it to go consistently over 4 meters at a fast speed. I liked our vehicle because it was simple and effective.

Some tips to make the project go more successfully would be to have two different set of wheels. For the drag race you should have small wheels and for the distance you should have big wheels.

Mousetrap Vehicle

Our mousetrap vehicle performed very well in the drag race but not so well in the distance competition. During the distance competition our mousetrap would always start off fast but come to a complete stop just under 4 meters. In the drag race competition we took the rubber off of the front wheel to make our car go faster. It helped a lot because we ended up winning!

Mousetrap vehicle during distance competition

. Photo by Josh Kitto.

If I could modify our mousetrap vehicle I would put a lighter front wheel on and bigger back wheels, like vinyl records.

What I would do differently if I made another mousetrap vehicle is put bigger back wheels on it so it would travel farther. I would also put a light wheel on the front so it would slide on the ground and move quickly.

To make our car perform better I think we could adjust the string so it would pull the axle and spin the wheels faster.

Group picture. Photo take by Josh Kitto.

The mousetrap competitions took place on December 12 and 13.