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Physics Lab Report - What Keeps a Stopper Moving in a Circle

Satisfactory Essays

What keeps the stopper moving in a circle?
Purpose: Relate the variables involved in uniform circular motion

Hypothesis: I predict that the velocity of the stopper will increase as the radius is shortened.

Rubber stopper with a hole
PVC tube or wooden spool

1. Measure the mass f the stopper and washer, m, and record it in the data and observations section. Then, prepare the experimental apparatus as shown in figure A.
2. Throughout this experiment, you will need to maintain a constant radius of uniform circular motion while ensuring that all of the centripetal force is provided by the clamp and measured on the spring scale. Practice whirling the stopper in a horizontal plane until you can keep the paper clip a short …show more content…

2. As the radius increases so does the speed of the stopper.
3. Analysis the resulting plot. Is there a pattern? If so what does the pattern mean?

4. Formulate an equation for the relationship between the spring force and the centripetal acceleration of the stopper. What does this equation tell you about the spring force?
This shows that the spring force is in direct relation to the centripetal force.
5. Justify the method of recording time for 30 rev to minimize the error associated with calculating the speed of the stopper. In other labs you have used multiple data runs and averaged the data to minimize the random error associated with measuring. Why did you not have to do that on
5. To get the most accurate time we had the person timing also count the revolutions of the stopper. And we didn’t have to do multiple data runs because the time is the least important

In this lab we found that the variables of circular motion are directly related. We accomplished our goal which was to relate the variables involved in uniform circular motion. I also proved my hypothesis incorrect, my hypothesis was that the velocity of the stopper will increase as the radius is shortened, which in fact as the radius was shortened the velocity decreased. In this lab there were several sources of error, the stopper was spinning so fast we may have miss counted how many revolutions it had, and the force was not constant the

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