Simple Machines

• Lever: experiment with changing the distances to fulcrum and the weights
• First vs. Second class levers
• Pulley experiments using single and compound pulleys to lift weights
• Wheel and axle
• Gears; build machines and measure the gear ratios
• Use spring scales to measure force and calculate the efficiency of machines

Archimedes' Principle

• Calculate the density of cubes made of different materials such as brass, copper, acrylic, oak, pine, polar, aluminum, and steel by measuring the volume and the weight
• Demonstratet hat a body submerged in water loses weight equal to its own weight in water
• Use overflow tanks to learn about specific gravity

Light and Color

The Nature of Light

• Use a ripple tank apparatus to study wave propagation
• Generate phase waves, freeze them with a stroboscope, and study wave interference

Optics

• Reflect light using a laser beam and mirror; measure the angles of incidence and reflection with a protractor
• Measure the refraction (bending) of light in plastic and water
• Observe total internal reflection, found in fiber optics
• Lenses: double concave, double convex, plano-concave, and plano-convex
• Measure the focal points of lenses using an optical bench
• Build a Galilean telescope

Galileo's Pendulum

• Use pendulum apparatus to investigate harmonic motion; vary weight, starting point, and length of string; measure the pendulum's period precisely using a light-timer.

Free Fall

• Use Free Fall tube apparatus to drop objects of different weights
• Newton's Second Law of Motion: Propel one ball horizontally while at the same instant releasing another to fall vertically
• Discover the co-efficient of gravity

Motion

• Measure the position and movement of objects; describe motion as a change in position over time; analyze motion in terms of vector components
• Velocity and acceleration: uniform linear motion and accelerated motion
• Newton's First Law — Inertia Apparatus: A fancy version of pulling a tablecloth out from under a dish, using balls and a spring apparatus

Forces

• Forces that oppose motion: pushes and pulls
• Friction: test surfaces for friction resistance; correlate friction resistance with weight; reduce friction with wheels and rollers
• Use a force table to add forces using vectors
• Discover the difference between mass and weight
• Newton's Third Law: Measure conservation of momentum by studying collisions; use Hall's carriages (model cars)
• Elastic and Inelastic Collisions: Does it bounce back?

Work and Energy

• Discover the relationships among force, work, and distance; measure the work done by moving a given mass a given distance
• Use a roller coaster apparatus to see the difference between potential and kinetic energy