Falling Paper (Yina Yang)

Author

Yina Yang

Principle(s) Illustrated

1. Friction resistance

2. Gravitational pull

Standards

• HS-PS-1 Analyze data to support the claim that Newton's second law of motion describes the mathematical relationship among the net force on a macroscopic object, its mass, and its acceleration

Questioning Script

Prior knowledge & experience:

When objects are dropped from a distance, objects will fall. The speed at which the object falls depends on the "heaviness" or "lightness" of the object such as a feather vs. a penny. When dropping a feather versus a penny, the penny will hit the ground faster compared to the feather.

Root question:

What will happen to the rate of decent of a piece of paper when it is placed on top of a heavy book and both are dropped together?

Target response:

The paper will fall at the same rate as the book and appears to stick to the top of the book. Essentially the paper is falling in the absence of air friction and this event demonstrates that removing the friction caused by air changes the kinematics for “light” objects.

Common Misconceptions:

The paper will take longer to fall because the paper is lighter than the book.

Photographs and Movies

References

Reference: Cenco Physics