Elastic Potential Energy
Question:
- What happens to the amount of energy stored as you stretch a rubber band?
Rephrased Investigative Question:
- How does the amount I pull back the rubber band affect the distance a piece of paper goes?
Hypothesis:
- If I increase the distance I pull back the rubber band, the distance the paper lands will increase because as I pull back on the rubber band, I also increase the elastic potential energy.
Materials:
- A meter long rubber band
- 1 piece of paper (folded 5 times)
- 1 meter stick
- 1 force meter
Procedures:
- Get materials
- Fold the paper in half 5x's
- Take the rubber-band contraption on the ground in between two sets of tiles on the floor.
- Put the paper on the rubber-band and pull back the paper to the 10cm mark
Here the student is pulling the paper back at 10 cm intervals to see how far it goes.
(Some other students also used a force meter to gauge how much force is being applied at the distance we pulled the rubber band back. This information is used to calculate the elastic potential energy).
(Some other students also used a force meter to gauge how much force is being applied at the distance we pulled the rubber band back. This information is used to calculate the elastic potential energy).
Here is a photo sequence of a student shooting off the paper at the 50 cm mark. Use this to make at least two observations.
Data:
Qualitative Observations:
- Based on the photos - make at least 2 observations
Quantitative Observations:
- Use the data provided to create a graph - like that one on the right. However, you only need to base it on the distance pulled and the average distance the object traveled.
Data Analysis:
- Use your data and graph to make 4 data analysis points.
Conclusion:
- Use all of this information to summarize your question & hypothesis, experiment and procedures, observations, results and data analysis.
- Address any experimental errors.
- Answer the original question using your data
- Address if this either proves or disproves your hypothesis and explain why.
Elastic Potential Energy Extensions:
In this video - the author explains Elastic Potential Energy. Watch the Tennis and Golf balls. They're incredible!
In this short video - witness what a golf ball experiences at low impact "putting".
Here, this fella cuts into several different golf balls. Here - he describes his discovery into the different substances used to make golf balls.
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In this video - you witness what happens to a golf ball hitting steel at high speeds
In this video - the author describes the research and development behind the Titleist brand golf ball using high speed cameras.
In this video - Discovery Channel goes into detail on how a golf ball is made.
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