Experiments

1. Angular Momentum: A photogate and a frictionless pulley is used with a pendulum to see how the frequency of the pendulum varies with a change in length of the string of the pendulum. With the moment of inertia of the pendulum and the frequency of the oscillation, the angular momentum is be calculated. Conservation of angular momentum is also verified.
    
2. Light Bulb Blow Out: A light bulb will blow out because of excessively high current. Students must design a circuit that will do just that the key to success is working with other teams to use the batteries in parallel.
    
3. Center of Gravity: A tilting apparatus along with a photogate is used to measure the point which an object begins to tip or slide as the angle of the tilting apparatus is increased.
    
4. Damped Vibrations: An accelerometer is used to verify properties of a damped mass-spring system. The system’s damping coefficient is determined experimentally.
    
5. Drag - Air Resistance: An ultrasonic sensor is used to measure the velocity of free falling coffee filter(s) and to show that the filter reaches a terminal velocity due to air resistance.
    
6. Speed of Sound: A microphone is placed near an open end of a hollow closed-ended tube to detect the time it takes sound to travel from the open end to the closed end, and then back.
    
7. Stability - Sliding and Overturning: A force sensor is used to pull on a wooden block until the block tips or slides. Emphasis is on Newton’s Laws of motion, friction, and an introduction to moments.
    
8. Accelaration Due to Gravity: Freefall motion is measured using a photogate and a 'picket fence'.
    
9. Graph Matching: A motion detector is used to create graphs of motion for student’s introduction to graphing physical phenomena.
    
10. Hand Power: Using the hand-crank-generator from the high school lab supplies, students power on light bulbs in series and parallel circuits, and measure the power they are outputting using voltage and current measurements. This power generation is compared to the massive amounts used to keep the lights on just in ONE of the high school classrooms.
     
11. Momentum and Impulse: Photogates and 'Hot Wheels' toy cars are used to demonstrate the different types of collisions.
     
12. Incline Motion: A photogate is used to detect the velocity of an object rolling down an incline.
     
13. Intro to Sensors: An introduction to the Vernier sensors used in the high school by the RAISE fellows.
     
14. Potential and Kinetic Energy: Photogates and 'Hot Wheels' toy cars are used to demonstrate conversion of energies.
     
15. Introduction to Linear Motion and Data Acquisition: An ultrasonic sensor is used to measure the velocity of free falling coffee filter(s) and to show that the filter reaches a terminal velocity due to air resistance.
     
16. Magnetic Field of a Solenoid: A Magnetic Field Sensor is used to determine the relationship between the magnetic field intensity within the interior of a solenoid and (i) the number of turns (ii) the current flowing through the solenoid.
     
17. Newton's First Law of Motion: A force sensor is used to verify Newton’s First Law.
     
18. Newton's Second Law of Motion: A photogate is used to detect the velocity of a free falling object. A force sensor can be used to measure the weight of the object to balance the equilibrium equation of Newton’s Second Law of Motion. Objects of different weight are dropped to develop an understanding of drag in free fall.
     
19. Newton's Third Law of Motion: A force sensor is used to verify the concept of equal action and reaction forces.
     
20. Pendulum Periods: A photogate is used to determine the period of a pendulum. Pendulum periods are also determined for varying mass and length of pendulum string.
     
21. Prediciting Projectile Motion
     
22. Pressure: A force sensor, aluminum foil, and some variable cross sections are used to determine the effects of pressure on piercing the aluminum foil. The experiment illustrates how pressure varies with different cross sectional areas with constant applied force.
     
23. Introduction to Projectile Motion: Photogates are used to determine the impact point of a ball undergoing projectile motion.
     
24. Two Dimensional Motion: A photogate is used in conjunction with a 'Hot Wheels' car to predict the landing point of an object in projectile motion.
     
25. Projectile Motion: Photogates are used to verify the experimental range and velocity of a toy car with theoretical values.
     
26. Pulley / Cart Motion: A Low-G Accelerometer measures the acceleration of a weighted dynamics cart as it is pulled by a falling mass via a table-mounted pulley.
     
27. Rotational Mechanics: A force sensor is used find the torque at the end of a see-saw.
     
28. Series and Parallel Circuits: Flashlight bulbs are used in series and parallel circuits to help students better understand Ohm’s Law and its practice.
     
29. Simple Harmonic Motion: An accelerometer is used to verify properties of a mass-spring system undergoing harmonic motion.
     
30. Static and Kinetic Friction: A force sensor is used to determine the coefficient of static friction. An ultrasonic sensor is then used to determine the coefficient of kinetic friction.
     
31. Vectors: Force sensors are used to perform vector addition.
     

1. Acid Rain: A pH sensor is used to measure how pH varies as the carbon dioxide level in water increases.
    
2. Acids and Bases: A pH sensor is used to measure the pH level of different consumer hair shampoos.
    
3. Acids and Bases: A pH sensor is used to test acidity of various substances.
    
4. Aerobic Respiration: A CO₂ gas sensor is used to measure the rate of respiration by using yeast to breakdown different sugars.
    
5. Anaeobic Respiration (Fermentation): CO₂ and O₂ gas sensors are used to measure the rate of respiration by using yeast to breakdown different sugars.
    
6. Calorie (Energy) Content in Food: A temperature sensor is used to determine how much energy is released from food as it burns.
    
7. Dissolved Oxygent in Water: By using a Dissolved Oxygen probe, it shows how does the temperature effect the Oxygen Level of water.
    
8. Distillation of Alcohol
    
9. Conducting Solutions: A conductivity sensor is used to measure the conductivity of a solution as the concentration of the solution increases.
    
10. Diffusion Through a Membrane: A conductivity sensor is used to measure the change in ionic concentrations in a solution over a period of time.
     
11. Enzymes
     
12. Greenhouse: A temperature sensor is used to plot temperature variations under 'green house' conditions.
     
13. Heart Rate: Students monitor their own heart rate and peers’ heart rates using the EKG sensor before and after exercise. They also learn to read an EKG.
     
14. Intro to Sensors: Fellows introduce the various sensors they’ll be using throughout the year in the labs and explain how these sensors can mimic the human senses.
     
15. Newton's Law of Cooling: A temperature probe is used to explore heat transfer phenomenon between hot water and air. Newton’s cooling model is used to predict the temperature of cooling water at any given time.
     
16. Photosynthesis and Respiration: A CO₂ and a O₂ sensor is used to determine the rate of photosynthesis of a plant.
     
17. Population Dynamics: A colorimeter is used to determine the growth rate of a closed population of yeast.
     
18. Sugar in Yeast Metabolism: In the process of yeast respiration, it consumes sugar to produce alcohol and carbondioxide. A carbon dioxide gas sensor is used to measure theCO2 level relating to the amount of sugar it is provided.
     
19. Water Distillation: Demonstates the distillation process of salt water by using a conductivity probe.