Physics of Sports Video
Our goal in this project was to make a comprehensive video explaining the physics of a certain motion in a sport. We were introduced with this video and first chose baseball, but with limited resources we eventually decided to do wiffleball.
In our video we explained the physics behind pitching, hitting, and sliding in wiffleball. This process took about 2-3 weeks and involved filming the movements, the talking, taking calculations, and lots of editing. We described velocity, force, momentum, and impulse in each of the steps. This is our script and video for our project:
STEM.mp4
We calculated many things in our project. Each one had a significance and was explained thoroughly. The things that we calculated were the vertical distance, horizontal distance, vertical velocity, horizontal velocity, total velocity, momentum, impulse, and force. Here is each one and the significance of them in each step:
Distance Vertical(dv)
We found the Vertical Distance in our pitch. We calculated this by using the vertical distance equation which is 1.2agt2. The acceleration due to gravity is 9.8 m/s2 and the t was 0.4 seconds. After plugging in the values we found the Vertical Distance of the pitch was 0.78m.
Vertical Velocity(Vv)
We found Vertical Velocity in our pitch and hit. In the pitch we used the Vertical Velocity equation(agtfall). The acceleration due to gravity is 9.8 m/s2 and the time of the fall was 0.4 seconds. After putting in the values and solving we got a Vertical Velocity of 4 m/s(about 9 mph). The time of fall for the hit was 0.5 seconds giving us a Vertical Velocity of 5 m/s(about 11 mph).
Horizontal Velocity(Hv)
We found our Horizontal Velocity in our pitch and hit. In both we used the equation for Horizontal Velocity which is(dh/t). Our horizontal distance in the pitch was 13m and the time of the pitch was 0.6 seconds giving us a horizontal velocity of 22 m/s(49 mph). The hit had a horizontal distance of 6 m and a time of 0.53 seconds giving us a velocity of 11 m/s(25 mph).
Total Velocity(Vtotal)
We found the total velocity of our pitch and hit. The total velocity is calculated with the equation Vh2+Vv2=Vtotal2. Since we had already calculated the vertical and horizontal velocities we found the velocity total was 22 m/s(49 mph) for the pitch and 12 m/s(27 mph) for the hit.
Momentum(p)
We found the momentum of all the steps which are the pitch, the hit, and the slide. Momentum is calculated by mv and it is equal to the impulse. The momentum of our pitch was 0.53 Ns, the momentum of the hit was 14 Ns, and the momentum of the slide was 313 Ns. Since momentum is equal to impulse the impulse for the pitch, hit, and slide are the same as the momentum.
Force(F):
We found the force of impact in our pitch and hit and we found the average force in our slide. To calculate the force of impact we set impulse equal to momentum. The momentum equation is mv and the impulse is Ft so we used mv=Ft. The mass of the ball in the pitch was 0.024kg and the velocity was 2.5 m/s. The time was 0.2 seconds. After plugging in the values we got a Force of Impact of 0.3 N(0.07 lbs). In our hit we used the same equation and got a force of 26N(6 lbs). For the force of the slide we used the force equation of ma. The mass of the runner was 62kg and the acceleration was 9.4 m/s. Giving us a force of 590 N which is about 133 lbs.
Velocity(V):
We found the velocity of the bat in our hit and the average velocity of the base runner running from home plate to second base. Velocity is found with the formula d/t. The distance the bat traveled was 9.42m and the time was 0.67 seconds giving us a velocity of 14 m/s(31 mph). The average velocity of the runner was the same formula but this time the distance was 26m and the time was 5 seconds giving us a velocity of 5 m/s(11 mph).
REFLECTION
In this project I feel I worked very well with my group and worked hard. Some of the things that I did the best in were collaboration and communication. I think I did well in these because our group worked very well and everybody wasn't afraid to share our ideas and suggestions. Everyone in our group collaborated well together and it made the project fun. We all worked hard and were leaders. During the project we communicated ideas very well and allowed us to work hard and get stuff done. 2 things that I would like to improve are conscientious learning and critical thinking. I think that I could have done better in goal setting and reflecting during the project in the category of consciousness learner. Also for critical thinking I could have asked more insightful questions to get help our group go above and beyond.