My Favorite Physics Lab Report

Position and Velocity

By: Luci Keller

Partner: Wendy Loomis

9/3/15

Experimental Description:

During this experiment we completed four different tasks to analyze position and velocity. First we dropped one bean bag every second while someone walked at a steady pace so we could use the distances between the bags to analyze velocity. Then we took turns walking forwards/backwards going fast/slow in front of a sonic range motion sensor, creating graphs of our positions and velocities vs time. We combined the bean bag method with the motion sensor method to compare our bean bag speed calculations vs the calculations from the graphs produced. We did this by dropping one bean bag per second as someone walked towards the motion sensor. Finally, we matched position and velocity to a given graph by determining how we could move in front of the motion sensor to best replicate the velocity on the given graph.

Data and Analysis:

TASK 1: Below is a sketch that replicates the dropping of bean bags while a person walked at two different speeds.

 

From the bean bag positions for both walks, you can tell that the person was walking at a steady pace because the distance between each bean bag is close to the same over a time interval of one second. Each walk lasted 4 seconds. You can tell that the person was walking faster in the first walk because they traveled a much larger distance than the second walk in the same amount of time.

Task 2: We then created different position vs time and different velocity vs time graphs using the sonic range motion sensor.

Position graph 1

                                                                  Position graph 2 

The sign (positive/negative) of the slope (Δd/Δt) graphs tells you the direction that the person was moving. In position graph 1, the person was moving backwards because their position is increasing with time (positive slope), meaning they are moving away from the sensor. In position graph 2, the person was moving forward because their position was decreasing with time (negative slope), meaning they are moving towards the sensor. The size of the slope tells you fast the person was walking. A larger slope means that the person was walking faster, and a smaller slope means they were walking slower.

Velocity graph 1

Velocity graph 2 

The sign (positive/negative) of the velocity tells you the direction the person was walking. In velocity graph 1, the person was gaining distance (equivalent to walking away from the motion sensor) because the velocity is positive. In velocity graph 2, the person was decreasing in distance (equivalent to walking towards the motion sensor) because the velocity is negative. The absolute value of the size of the velocity tells you how fast the person was walking. In velocity graph 1, just by looking at the graph, it appears that the average velocity was .3 m/s. In velocity graph 2 it was about .5 m/s (absolute value of -.5 m/s), meaning that the person is velocity graph 2 was walking faster.

Task 3:

Graphs that correspond with bean bags

 

We calculated the speed of the walker using the bean bags first by finding the mean of the distances between each of the bean bags and dividing that by the total seconds traveled.

.69m + .65m +.61m + .59m + .62m / 5 sec = .63 m/s

From the velocity graph, we can see that the walker’s actual speed was around .40 m/s. Our calculations of speed using the bean bags was around .23 m/s faster than the actual speed, meaning our results were not very reliable.  

Task 4:

Recreation of given velocity graph

From looking at the given graph, we determined that we needed to stand still for the first two seconds, walk backwards (away from the motion sensor) for two seconds, stand still for one second, walk forwards (toward the motion detector) for 3 seconds, then stop for the rest of the time. The above graph was created by following these steps, and is fairly close to the original graph.

Conclusion:

To conclude, the relation between position and velocity and time can be analyzed through graphs. We determined that a positive velocity means an object is gaining distance while a negative velocity means an object is decreasing in distance. A positive slope on a position graph means that the object is moving away from the motion sensor and a negative slope means that the object is moving towards the motion sensor. Errors that could have had effect on this experiment would be not correctly calibrating the motion sensor or not pointing the motion sensor at a flat moving object (i.e. a baggy wrinkly shirt could have caused errors in the measurement of position).

To do or not to do: ITALY

Currently I am trip to Italy with 25 of my classmates. We have only been here for a few days, but I have already came up with quite a few tips for having a great experience in the land of pizza and pasta.

TIPS:
- If someone tries to hand you pigeon food, don't take it. You'll value that five euros more than you would having pigeons land on you for 30 seconds.
- Tour guides exist for a reason. Everything is better when you pay attention, so listen to your guide even if you're sure this gold painted ceiling is the exact same as the last.
- Buy a plaid scarf. You may not want the scarf, but you need the scarf.
- Do not maintain eye contact with people attempting to sell you useless things on the street. You will never be able to escape.
- Make a list of everything you do not need before you go to the market place. Avoid even glancing at shops that are selling belts when you already have one on and three at home.
- Always say thank you after you get a sample at a Gelato place.
- Talk to Italians on public transportation. Many speak English and will be delighted to tell you about Italy, and maybe even taste one of your weird American wasabi almonds.
- Watch a Murano glass making demonstration. It will probably be one of the more interesting five minutes of your life.
- Go out in a group of less than 4 if you want too. You might get in trouble, but the freedom you have to do what YOU want will be worth it.
- Always say yes to cheese on top.

I haven't been here for long, so I'm sure this list will grow as I experience more of the country. If you have any Italy tips of your own, put them in the comments.
Ciao!

Garilynn

In summer 2012, my aunt was diagnosed with stage 4 lymphoma. Her name was Garilynn Hancock. When I heard the news, I frantically looked up lymphoma to try and get some sense of what it what doing to her body (if you are clueless, read more here). In the beginning, it was a really scary time for everyone. She was undergoing major chemotherapy, and it wasn't certain yet if she was actually fighting the cancer successfully. The months became a year, and by fall of 2013 we received amazing news. She had won; she could go home, get a job, and grow her hair back. What a joyous moment, I wish that it would have lasted much longer than it did. Less than a month later, she was diagnosed with lymphoblastic leukemia, a cancer related to lymphoma but an entirely new beast to tackle (mainly affects bone marrow). She immediately went back to chemotherapy and was staying at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fl.

The first week of April 2014, my parents, Mia Kessler, my sister, grandmama, and granddaddy all ventured to Jacksonville for a vacation/visiting Garilynn. The trip itself was actually a very fun time. We rented a house right on the beachfront downtown that was supposedly priced at $3,000,000 (thankfully not how much it cost to rent) and my grandmama cooked every single meal. I can confidently say I ate more chips and dip on this trip than any other trip I've ever been on, but I couldn't have been more happy with that fact. The ocean water was freezing; however, Mia and I still wanted to get wet, so we played in the waterhole. The waterhole was a low area on the beach that stayed filled with water when the tide went out. This small shallow body warmed quickly, allowing us to crawl around in it and pretend to be wild animals splashing in a waterhole in Africa.

Jax beach is dirty. There is more trash on the sand and floating in the water than I've ever seen before at a beach. Mia and I took it upon ourselves to fix this problem, spending hours walking on the beach and running into the frigid water to clean up as best we could. One night we went walking around the town and found a cappuccino maker on the side of the road. We naturally took it back to the house, along with a chunk of aloe vera (maybe actually not aloe vera because it was the worst smelling plant I've ever encountered) plant we found growing beside the cappuccino maker, and I could tell my dad was proud of me for bringing home a piece of junk I found. We never got it working; oh well. 

The trip was a blast, but we couldn't forget the reason we were there. Garilynn was so small in that hospital bed, the tall beautiful woman she was before was gone. It was her birthday; we celebrated by sneaking her in a pork chop. One week later, she died. It was so crazy to think about it. She beat one form of cancer, she was getting her life back to normal, and then she gets struck down again and this time doesn't have enough strength to get back up. I was sad; I wouldn't say that we had a super close relationship, but what really hurt was seeing how it affected my grandmama. To this day, she is still devastated that her only daughter and best friend in the world is gone.

We miss you, Garilynn.

Center: Garilynn / Left: her husband, Craig / Right: her son, Ben

Gambling Gyros

In 2011, I went on a family trip with the Kessler’s to St. Louis, Missouri. The crew was composed of Leslie, Ben, Katie Herrell, Meredith, Mia, and me. The first day we did normal St. Louis things; went up in the arch, explored the children’s science museum, and played hide and go seek in the giant Macy’s. The car ride was full of screaming matches between Leslie and Ben and the hotel was sketchy, both trademarks of a Kessler trip. The next day we decided to eat lunch at a little hole-in-the-wall Greek restaurant in downtown. There was no one else there, only the owner. He was shaving meat off of a vertical rotisserie to prepare the infamous gyros, something I had only ever heard of from my parents. I of course had to try one, and it was quite tasty. Tzatziki sauce was magically creamy and cumumbery, and pita bread was soft as a pillow. We chatted with the owner and became good friends with him. Three years later the Kessler’s went back to that restaurant and said that the owner remembered them.

That night, Ben decided he wanted to go to a casino. The building had neon purple lights on the outside and us kids were super excited. Leslie was convinced that kids could go into the game area of casinos, they just couldn’t play any games. We tried of course, only to get very quickly stopped by security. Security told us that Leslie must stay with us on the outside the whole time while Ben went in. She did as she was told, and we all decided to climb on top of the seats to peer into the game area. In a lickity split, security was on us again, prohibiting all climbing and peering. They were on to us now; we couldn’t take any risks. However, it was midnight and Ben still wasn’t out. We needed Leslie to go get him, but she couldn’t leave us, so we hid in the only place that we thought wouldn’t have a camera; the bathroom stall. It was stressful, we felt like it was the end of the world if we got caught. After 20 minutes of cowering and listening to smooth bathroom jazz, we were freed by Leslie’s voice. What a rigamaror, maybe gambling just isn't my thing.

Paddle Your Own Canoe

"If we each had a gun right now, we would all be dead" - David Keller, while canoeing in 2008.

I am 8 years old and standing on the side of the Current River, 5 miles upstream from the small town of Eminence, Missouri. My mom and dad are loading our backpacks and cooler into the canoe, and beckoning me to come take my seat in the middle. I have never canoed before; my parents have once ten years prior, but they flipped that day and now I am very hesitant to begin our journey. I take my seat, and the bickering begins immediately. Not 100 feet downstream and my mom is insulting my dad, my dad is insulting my mom, and I am yelling with panic.

"God bless America, DAVID, you turn from the opposite side!"

"If you think you could do better, just do it yourself!"

"DADDY WE ARE FIXING TO HIT A ROCK!!!!"

A picture of my family canoeing

   

If I would have had my way, we would have stopped immediately. But alas, we had to make it to the dock in Eminence. I gritted my teeth and managed to have a little fun splashing in the frigid river water, but once my legs were back on dry land, I vowed to never canoe again.

Fast forward 6 years: I am once again standing on the side of the Current River with a canoe in front of me. After my 6 year period of canoe abstinence, my parents had talked me into giving it another go. The previous day had been spent driving 252 miles from Hopkinsville, Ky with one stop at the roll-throwing restaurant called Lamberts. 

 

Meredith and Mia Kessler were along for the ride, and we were staying at the River's Edge hotel in Eminence. 

There were two canoes; my mom and Meredith had one while my dad, Mia, and I had the other. My dad was attempting to psych me out, telling me he was going to flip the boat and the rapids were wild today. I didn't let him though; I couldn't, or else I would have never gotten into that canoe. We set off, and promptly began the day with Meredith and my mom running into tree branches that had fallen across the river and getting themselves stuck. It was quite a funny scene, my mom screaming "DAVID!!!!" at the top of her lungs and Meredith attempting to push them away with her paddle. They finally got out of the bind, and almost instantly became the ones laughing instead of us because Mia had dropped a shoe during the rigamaror and we had to race to retrieve it. With shoe in tow, we stopped on the side for a lunch of 3 MRE's. We decided a dip in the water was a good idea, but quickly surrendered to the 58 degree rapidly flowing river. 

The river

At the end of day, no had died and I hadn't cried, so all and all it was a successful canoeing trip. We celebrated with dinner at a local diner in Eminence and an evening of games on the river's edge at the River's edge. On the way home the next day we stopped at Rocky Falls.

  

The waterfall had smoothed the rock down enough that in one place you could slide down the rocks like you were at a real water park. My dad tried to catch a snapping turtle while Mer, Mia, and I climbed to the top of the falls. After one last stop in Boomland (one of the largest firework warehouses in the world) to pee, we finish out our trip.

SKI

During my Thanksgiving Break in 2015, Luke Miles (my current boyfriend) invited me to go on a skiing trip in Michigan with him and his family. I ecstatically said yes, and after just arriving home from my week long adventure, I am happy to say that it was really an awesome experience. It started on December 27 with a switch in Leitchfield, Ky. I stayed that night at 504 South Hamilton Street in Georgetown with Luke's mom Colleen and his stepdad Albert. Their house is so inviting; I feel right at home, and even helped make a batch of guacamole. We all sat on the couch side by side and watched the first Star Wars movie and the first half of the second (which I surprisingly really enjoyed!)

After a dermatologist appointment in the morning, Luke, Hal (Luke's dad), Cheryl (Hal's girlfriend), and I loaded into the "party wagon", an old suburban with wood interiors that set the tone for the whole trip. During our car ride, I was introduced to the National Public Radio. We listened to educational podcasts, stories of people's lives, how expectations affect our lives, and a hilarious Christmas improv show. This radio along with word games such as fortunately/unfortunately and syllable storytelling made for a really great car ride. We stayed the first night in a town called Brighton, where the infamous Faeth family lived. Michelle (the mom) seemed to be a pleasant yet lonely house wife, attempting to keep her rein in a household of five men. Dave (the dad) was quite simply loud. The oldest son Nick was the total cool guy, a football player with an aura of pure suave. Then there were Collin (almost 15) and Trevor (18). I think it is safe to say I am completely obsessed with these two boys. There is just something about them that really drew me in, especially while playing the game pandemic (read Luke's blog in the link to learn more about this game). We played this game probably seven times during the trip, but bananas or communism or first world problems or cat butts always proved to be stronger.

Fast forward to Tuesday morning at the bottom of the slopes of Schuss mountain in Michigan. I had just gotten all suited in my ski gear (who knew ski boots were so hard to get on) and Luke and I were ready to tackle the ski lift (only by day three could I get off of the lift without falling). I thought we were heading straight to the bunny slope for me to start slow, but apparently we had to go down what seemed to me an impossible hill to get to it. Luke tried to coach me down, but the only place I got was literally down on the ground, where I floundered for many minutes in my attempt to stand. My eyes were welling with tears; I was frustrated, and the whole escapade was seeming impossible and worthless. I put my ski mask on to hide my pain a

nd eventually got down, where Cheryl and Hal showed me the ropes. By the end of the day I was pizzaing down the slopes at a very slow but steady pace. The next day I spent the morning with Hal and Cheryl as they taught me more and more. Hal was a very good teacher, barking at me the whole time but always being encouraging. Luke spent the afternoon with me, and his feedback also helped me to gain more confidence and speed. By the third day, even though my anxiety was at an astronomical level, I pushed through and really enjoyed myself and my growing skiing ability. I was transitioning to french fries and riding the lift by myself, making conversation with many strangers.

That night for supper we had duck and Cheryl's supreme fruity salad. It was a meal of celebration, and I really was celebrating because on that first morning on the slopes I really thought that this trip would be completely awful. Luke, Collin, Trevor, and I rang in 2016 with mugs of orange juice and I got my first new years kiss. I played Halo and got three kills, and I sat in a Little Caesers for 2 and a half hours while munching on discounted cheese sticks. That morning when we left, I was happy to know I wouldn't be waking up to the sound of Dave's voice for a while, but I really was sad to leave. Back in Georgetown, I met Luke's sister Spring and she really made smile, the cherry on top of everything else.

What makes you feel alive?

I’ve been hiking in a Costa Rican jungle. I’ve wandered in foreign towns in the middle of the night. I’ve gotten all A’s since elementary school. These events encompass adventure, thrill, and pride, and provide color to the canvas of my life. However, nothing has ever made me feel more alive, nothing has ever made such a bright streak of neon on my canvas, than when I speak to people about something I love.

 Communication is the connection of people and places. We have all been communicating with each other since birth, but I have taken it a step further. I remember in sixth grade when I had to present my first ever speech, and although my little legs were shaking the whole time, I had never felt more elated than while I was giving it. This initial spark inside me has not died at all, but instead is slowly growing brighter. I went on to compete in a speech team for four years, present bills at KYA, and now at Gatton I have tried to be at as many functions as I can to tell people about this wonderful place I call home. Speaking about Gatton is my true passion. I love this place with everything in me, and I let my passion flow out of me to others through my words. Communicating with people puts me on Cloud 9, and causes a fire to start in my heart, making me feel completely and utterly alive.