Factors Which Affect The Time For A Swing

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Factors Which Affect The Time For A Swing

Introduction

I will be taking part in an experiment where I will be investigating the time taken for a pendulum to complete 20 swings while altering the length of the string.

Planning

Safety

When taking parts in experiments like these there are a number of things that can go wrong and be harmful to personal safety, therefore, I will state and explain all of the safety precautions you should take when carrying out this type of experiment. This is a physical experiment not a chemical experiment so in theory there shouldn’t be much that can go wrong. I would suggest the only safety hazard would be if the apparatus was left on the side of a bench, therefore to overcome this I will make sure that all of my equipment is set up in the centre of the bench so that nothing gets knocked over which could ruin the experiment or even more importantly hurt yourself.

Fair Test

It is important to make an experiment like this as fair as possible. It will never be possible in the environment we are given with to make this completely fair however we can try to make it as fair as possible. In order to do this the following will have to be done,

  • The weight of the pendulum must not be altered at all because the idea of this experiment is to see if the length of the string affects the total time, not the weight. If the weight of the ball on the end of the string changed at any point during the experiment it would be an unfair test meaning that the results would not be accurate.
  • Somebody will have to monitor how many swings have been done and another person will have to be in charge of a stop clock to time the event. It is very important that some one monitors the swings closely so that they can tell the person in charge of the stop clock exactly when to stop.
  • The experiment must be taken place in a controlled environment, by this I mean it must be done in the same room once started. It cannot be done outside or where there is a draft otherwise the swing time and environment becomes unreliable making it an unfair test.
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Apparatus

For this experiment a number of apparatus will be used, these are,

  • String – This will be used as the main variable of the experiment, this is what will determine the outcome of my conclusion
  • Pendulum Ball – This will be made from plaster scene and regularly checked for weight as it’s a changeable product.
  • Clamp Rod – This will be used to attach the string from so that the pendulum can swing with ease.
  • Stop Clock – This will be used to time the experiment, the clock will start as soon as the ...

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