Lesson+17+&+18+Lab

**﻿Advancememt in Physics @ Dwight Englewood** **Director: Elise Burns** **TA: Sebastian Luhol**

__Objective:__ How does an air bag protect you during an accident? An air bag decreases the amount of force exerted on the object, ie. the driver and passengers. The airbag absorbs the force being acted on you. Since energy can not be lost the airbag is put in place to absorb it.

__Materials:__ List any materials used and draw a labeled diagram of your set-up (alternatively, include a snapshot or video).
 * Flour
 * Bowl
 * Eggs
 * Medium sized plastic bag
 * Meter stick



__Procedure:__ //Note: You may want to use the available technology to take "Before" and "After" pics to post in your data table to assist and elaborate on your written descriptions.//


 * 1) Measure the length of your egg #1. Measure the mass of your egg. Record this information.
 * 2) Place an egg in a ziplock bag, squeezing out all of the air in the bag before sealing.
 * 3) Hold a ruler up on the table vertically. Hold the egg vertically at the 2 cm mark. (Keep the excess bag on top.) Drop it.
 * 4) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">Hold the egg the same exact way at the 4-cm mark and repeat. Continue this process until the egg shell is slightly cracked.
 * 5) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">Continue until the egg is smashed and the yolk leaks out. Measure the amount of egg still undamaged. How much of the egg is smashed?
 * 6) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">Fill a bowl with flour and place the bowl inside of the box lid.
 * 7) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">Measure the length of your egg #2. Measure the mass of your egg. Record this information.
 * 8) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">Drop the egg from the smash height (Step 5). Measure the amount of egg sticking up out of the flour bed. How much of the egg is buried in the flour? Also, record your qualitative observations.
 * 9) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">Repeat this, increasing the height in 5-cm increments until the egg is cracked, and then smashed.

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%;">__Data and observations__: <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%;">In this lab the egg began to crack at .005 m. compared to remaining intact after 2.5 m when landing in flour symblozing an air bag in a collision.

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%;">__Calculations:__ Show a sample for each, with equation(s), numbers plugged in, and answer with correct units.
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">What is the initial gravitational potential energy?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">How much work is done in each trial?
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">How much force was used to stop the egg in each case?

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%;">__Questions:__


 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">This investigation is an analogy for a person in an automobile collision. What does the egg represent? What does the table represent? What does the flour represent?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">Define the terms: Gravitational Potential Energy, Kinetic Energy and Work.
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">What factors determine an object's kinetic energy?
 * 4) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">When work is done on an object, what is the effect on the object's kinetic energy?
 * 5) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">How does the force needed to stop a moving object depend on the distance the force acts?
 * 6) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">What difference does a soft landing area make on a passenger during a collision?
 * 7) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">How does a cushion reduce the force needed to stop a passenger?
 * 8) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%; margin-top: 0in;">What does the law of conservation of energy have to do with this?

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%;">__Conclusion:__
 * <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%;">Using the law of conservation of energy, explain how an air bag can protect you during an accident. Use specific observations from this investigation to support your answers to these questions.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%;">Explain at least 1 cause of experimental error. Be sure you describe a specific reason.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%;">How would you improve the results of this lab? (In other words, what would you change about the materials or procedure to eliminate or reduce the experimental error you describe above?)