Data Analysis - falling object

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James Harding

Data Analysis

Aim: To interpret data given relevant to my knowledge of physics and present the information I have found. The data is about falling with air resistance.

Experiment: The experiment from which my data derives involves a steel ball with a piece of card attached falling through the air. The two measurements I am given are the distance the ball travels and the time it takes to travel this distance. There are three results taken for each distance, allowing a more accurate average to be calculated. The diagram for the experiment is shown below:

To release the ball you flick the switch from A to B, this turns off the electromagnet that is keeping the ball in place. It then creates a circuit, which starts the electronic stop-clock. When the ball hits the trap door the circuit is broken so the timer stops, showing you how long the ball took to fall that distance.  

Plan: I plan to take an average of the results for each distance and plot a graph of distance against time. I can then work out the velocity and acceleration and check if these fit with my knowledge of what should happen when an object falls with resistance. I will then do further research into the physics behind this experiment to find out how accurate the data is and whether or not it is useful evidence to back up scientific principles that we hold true today.

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Prediction: I know that due to Newton’s laws; when something is in free fall its acceleration should be constant. However, due to air resistance an object in free fall will eventually reach a terminal velocity. This is because, as the object hits particles of air, the force of the air against the falling object will increase until it is the same as the force of the object. At this point the object will not be accelerating as it is falling at a constant speed:

 

As the ball only falls 95cm at maximum, it is unlikely that it will ...

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