Oscillation Of A Slinky Lab Report
The relationship between mass and time of oscillation of a slinky
Introduction In the 1950’s, Richard James accidentally discovered what we called today as the ‘slinky’. As he was trying to engineer a way to keep sensitive ship equipment steady at sea, he accidentally knocked some springs off the shelf which caused them to fall. He noticed that these springs appeared to be gracefully “walking” down the shelves instead of them simply falling down. James’ accidental discovery sparked way for further understanding of springs.
Nowadays, slinkies have been regarded as toys that are played by children all across the globe. A slinky is basically a type spring which is known to stretch very easily. When held vertically downward, its weight stretches it to a certain length. In this position, stretching it then releasing immediately would allow the slinky to oscillate …show more content…
www.toyhalloffame.org/toys/slinky http://www.phys.ttu.edu/~batcam/Courses/semester%201/Labs/UNIT%2014%20SIMPLE%20HARMONIC%20MOTION.htm Research Question
How does adding mass to a slinky affect the time of oscillation?
Hypothesis
The time of oscillation would increase as a heavier mass is attached to the slinky. As noticed in the previous equation , when T is plotted against m, with k being constant, it would show a exponential graph with power . Similarly, when T2 is plotted with m, it would show a linear graph between T2 and m with a gradient related to its spring constant.
Variables
Independent variable: mass, m (g) Dependent variable: time period, T (s) Controlled variable: Mass, m
Reason: Weights with different mass have distinct inertia, thus affecting the period of
Introduction In the 1950’s, Richard James accidentally discovered what we called today as the ‘slinky’. As he was trying to engineer a way to keep sensitive ship equipment steady at sea, he accidentally knocked some springs off the shelf which caused them to fall. He noticed that these springs appeared to be gracefully “walking” down the shelves instead of them simply falling down. James’ accidental discovery sparked way for further understanding of springs.
Nowadays, slinkies have been regarded as toys that are played by children all across the globe. A slinky is basically a type spring which is known to stretch very easily. When held vertically downward, its weight stretches it to a certain length. In this position, stretching it then releasing immediately would allow the slinky to oscillate …show more content…
www.toyhalloffame.org/toys/slinky http://www.phys.ttu.edu/~batcam/Courses/semester%201/Labs/UNIT%2014%20SIMPLE%20HARMONIC%20MOTION.htm Research Question
How does adding mass to a slinky affect the time of oscillation?
Hypothesis
The time of oscillation would increase as a heavier mass is attached to the slinky. As noticed in the previous equation , when T is plotted against m, with k being constant, it would show a exponential graph with power . Similarly, when T2 is plotted with m, it would show a linear graph between T2 and m with a gradient related to its spring constant.
Variables
Independent variable: mass, m (g) Dependent variable: time period, T (s) Controlled variable: Mass, m
Reason: Weights with different mass have distinct inertia, thus affecting the period of