In this project, I explore the physics of a fidget spinner, including how the angle changes over time, the angular velocity, and the angular acceleration. I also use a physical pendulum to determine the inertia of a fidget spinner, which helps me to calculate the kinetic rotational energy and angular momentum.

Note: I will not be looking at kinetic translational energy, gravitational potential energy, or linear momentum of the fidget spinner, as all these factors should be zero because the fidget spinner only rotates and doesn't translate.

I recorded three videos:

1. Rotational Motion: I used my finger to rotate the fidget spinner directly. This video was used to calculate theta, omega, and alpha.

2. Pendulum 1: I attached a fidget spinner to a physical pendulum and recorded the pendulum going through simple harmonic motion. This allows me to use equations from simple harmonic motion to help me calculate certain values for the fidget spinner, such as rotational inertia.

3. Pendulum 2: I used the same pendulum as video 2, but attached the fidget spinner further up the pendulum. This allows me to get different values than the other pendulum, which can help me calculate certain values for the fidget spinner, such as rotational inertia

Guiding Questions

1. How does the initial angular velocity impact the overall time that the fidget spinner stays in rotational motion?

2. How does the inertia of a fidget spinner compare with other objects? Is it greater than or less than the inertia of a disc? Why is it like this? 

3. How does the angular momentum of a fidget spinner change over time?

4. Why does a fidget spinner slow down and not continue to spin forever?