TI-Nspire™ Activities: Physics
April 1, 2008 through April 8, 2008
Simple Harmonic Motion
| Part 1 – Collecting displacement data | |
| Step 1: Students will use a Vernier CBR 2™ or Go!™Motion motion sensor to collect displacement data. When students open the .tns file, they may get the error message “The expected data collection device was not found.” Instruct them to select OK to continue with the activity. When students reach page 1.2, they should connect their motion sensor to their handheld or computer. This should activate the motion sensor and insert a new page, page 1.3, into the student TI-Nspire document. The motion sensor should start clicking slowly, and the green light on the front should turn on. |
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| Step 2: After making sure all students are wearing safety goggles, pass out pendulums to the students. They should set up their CBR 2 sensor by opening up the light gray part of the sensor so it is perpendicular to the floor, as shown in the figure to the right. Students should then practice swinging a pendulum so that it remains directly in front of the metal grid on the motion sensor at all times, and so that it does not hit the sensor as it swings. |
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| Step 3: When students are able to swing the pendulum correctly, they will begin data collection. They should pull the pendulum back 20–30 cm, release it, and then press the ¢ button on the screen. After students have collected their data, they should examine the small plot of the data on the left side of the screen. If the data plot is not smooth, or if there are gaps or large horizontal regions in the data plot, have students repeat the data collection. After students have collected a “clean” data set like the one shown, they should close the data collection box and disconnect the motion sensor. | 
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| Step 4: Next, students will advance to page 1.4 and make a scatter plot of displacement vs. time. They should adjust the scale of the graph so they can see all their data clearly. Note: The nature of the pendulum and how “cleanly” it swings will affect how perfect a sine curve students produce. They should repeat their data collection until they have a relatively clean curve, but small flat sections like the ones shown to the right will not significantly affect their calculations. To eliminate the flat regions, students can move the CBR 2 further from the pendulum, if space allows. |
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| Part 2 – Calculating the force on the pendulum | |
| Step 1: Next, students will determine the rest position for the pendulum. They will first determine the rest position graphically. They should draw a line parallel to the x-axis that runs through the midpoint of the data set. They should then use the Coordinates and Equations tool to identify the y-coordinate of this line. Note: If you wish, you may have students measure the distance between the motion sensor and the pendulum bob when the pendulum is not swinging. They can then compare this distance to the rest position they determine below. Q1. Based on your graph, what is the rest position of your pendulum? A. Student answers will vary. Check students' work to make sure they have correctly placed their lines. |
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| Step 2: Next, students calculate the rest position using the mean function and the Calculator application on page 1.5. Q2. What is the calculated rest position of your pendulum? A. Student answers will vary. However, the calculated rest position should not be significantly different from the one determined graphically. Q3. Compare the rest position you obtained graphically with the one you calculated. Comment on any differences. Which value is more accurate? Explain your answer. A. Student answers will vary. The calculated value is probably more accurate because the graphically determined value depends on the students' ability to identify the central point of the data. |
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| Step 3: Next, students re-center their displacement values by subtracting the rest position from all the collected data points. | 
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| Step 4: Next, students calculate the net force on the pendulum using the equation F = ma. They will need to measure the masses of their pendulums in order to use this equation. Q4. What is the mass of your pendulum in kilograms? A. Student answers will vary. |
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| Part 3 – Analyzing the pendulum's motion | |
| Step 1: Next, students plot the net force on the pendulum vs. the displacement of the pendulum using the Data & Statistics application on page 1.6. They use a linear regression to find the best-fit equation for the data. Q5. Is the displacement directly proportional to the net force? A. The displacement should be directly proportional to the net force (the data should lie on a straight line). Q6. What is the equation of the best-fit movable line you found? A. Student answers will vary. If you wish, you may encourage students to discuss the meaning of the slope of the best-fit line. Help them realize that the slope of this line is proportional to the frequency of the pendulum—if they used a higher frequency pendulum, the slope of this line would be greater. Q7. Based on these data, did your pendulum act as a simple harmonic oscillator (i.e., F = –kx) during this activity? Explain your answer. A. The displacement of the pendulum was directly proportional to the net force on the pendulum, which is a requirement for simple harmonic motion. Therefore, based on these data, the pendulum acted as a simple harmonic oscillator during this activity. |
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| Step 2: Next, students attempt to fit a sine curve to their data. They plot the function f1(x) = sin(x) using the data they used on page 1.4. They should use the NavPad to drag the curve around to get it to fit the data as well as possible. If you wish, and time allows, you may have the students insert a Data & Statistics application, plot zerodisp vs. run0.time_s, and then use a sinusoidal regression to determine the best-fit equation for the collected data. Q8. What is the best-fit equation for displacement vs. time for the data you collected? A. Student answers will vary. |
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| Step 3: Next, students calculate the function for the velocity of the pendulum, v(x), using the derivative function. | 
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| Step 4: Next, students calculate the function for the acceleration of the pendulum, a(x), using the derivative function. |
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| Step 5: Next, students graph a(x) on the same graph with the acceleration data the motion detector collected. Q9. Does the second derivative seem to model the acceleration data well? A. The second derivative should give a fairly good fit to the acceleration data for regions in which a(x) is small. In regions in which a(x) is large, the errors are much greater. The amount of error in the fit will depend on how clean a sine curve students were able to generate when they collected their data. The more perfect the sine curve is, the better the fit of a(x) will be. However, because of the way the detector collects position data, the acceleration data will never produce a perfect fit to the acceleration function. Q10. Compare the displacement and acceleration equations (f1(x) and a(x), respectively). Based on these equations, did your pendulum exhibit simple harmonic motion? Explain your answer. A. The equations should show that a(x) ≈ k • f1(x). This type of relationship is consistent with simple harmonic motion. |
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