Experimental Hypothesis

So here's the hypothesis we hope to prove, the purpose of the whole experiment, and the procedure so that you can try it at home!

Hypothesis:   As the mass of the object being expelled increases, the rate of acceleration and velocity decreases.

Purpose:    To explore the real world application of Mass v. Acceleration in regards to human cannon balls and their limits on force so that they will not black out or die. We will use these results to see the way weight effects the acceleration of humans as they are launched from the cannon.

Materials: A laptop, a mini launcher, 3 different massed balls (we used 5g, 16g, and 2g), a calculator, something to catch the flying ball with(we used a bag), safety goggles

Procedure:

1.       Set up laptop, Photogate Mounting Bracket, mini launcher (30degrees) and ball catcher.

2.       Push mini launcher back to fist notch with a pencil and place a ball in

3.       Record the velocity and repeat two more times.

4.       Repeat steps 2 and 3 with remaining balls.

5.       Find average velocities by adding all of the velocities for each ball up and dividing by three

6.       Use the average velocity to calculate acceleration by using the formula v²=V_o²+2ax