Final Project
In order to develop an understanding of harmonic motion, we were tasked with creating a hypothetical (or real) swing and find relations in its motion.
We decided to create a hypothetical swing and needed to determine a relationship between torque and Force as well as prove the energy is conserved. Our hypothetical swing was a 2m long swing, 1m off the ground, swinging at a 60° angle with an arc length of 4.2m. In the end, 100% of the energy was conserved, most likely because it was hypothetical so we were able to minimize error. To add a level of complexity we considered what would happen if we added perpendicular force to the swing to increase the torque.
Content
a max = 2πfv max
v max= 2πfA
f = 1/T
F = mgcos(60°)
F(tension) = m(v2/r + g)
Ktransi + W = Ktransf + Krotf
I was actually excited to do this project because my group had a lot of brain power. But, unfortunately, this project was during a time of the year were the work load was immense, but the attention spans were minute. Two of our group members were restless, so we allowed them to go do field work, while the other two of us completed the calculations. However, this was a blessing in disguise, as I returned to school two weeks into the project, I missed a lot of the content, but doing the majority of the calculations, allowed for me to improve my understanding. I recieved my highest grade on an FRQ for this unit because I was very familiar with equations after the excessive critical thinking. In a way, this was my favorite project, just because I felt the most knowledgeable about this unit. I felt very prepared and with this being the last unit of the year, I felt that it was a great close to my STEM career.
I felt that I did a lot of calculating and critical thinking and I feel that I was a great asset to my group, but I am a poor leader. Rather than calling group members in to work, I would rather send them away, so as not to distract me. This has been a theme all throughout my high school career, and has yet to change.