Domino Effect
Purpose: To investigate the ways in which distance, time, and average speed are interrelated by maximizing the speed of falling dominoes. To become familiar with elementary graphing techniques
Procedure:
Step 1:Set up 50 dominoes in a straight row, with equal spacing between them. The dominoes must be spaced at least the thickness of one domino apart. Your goal is to maximize the speed at which a row of dominoes falls down. Set the dominoes in a way you think will give the greatest speed.
Step 2:Measure the total length of your row of dominoes.
Step 3:Compute the average spacing distance between dominoes by measuring the length from the middle of the first domino to the middle of the last one, and divide this by the number of domino spacings.
Step 4:Measure the length of a domino.
Step 5:Measure the time it takes for your row of dominoes to fall down.
6:Compute the average toppling speed for your row of dominoes.
Step 7:Repeat Steps 5 and 6 for at least three more spacings. Include a spacing that is about as small as you can make it and still produce toppling and a spacing that is about as large as you can make it and still produce toppling. Record your data (including data for the first trial) in Data Table A.Step
8:Using a separate piece of graph paper, make a graph of your data by sketching a smooth curve through your data points. Identify the point on the curve where the speed is maximum or minimum (this need not be exactly at one of your measured points).
Procedure:
Step 1:Set up 50 dominoes in a straight row, with equal spacing between them. The dominoes must be spaced at least the thickness of one domino apart. Your goal is to maximize the speed at which a row of dominoes falls down. Set the dominoes in a way you think will give the greatest speed.
Step 2:Measure the total length of your row of dominoes.
Step 3:Compute the average spacing distance between dominoes by measuring the length from the middle of the first domino to the middle of the last one, and divide this by the number of domino spacings.
Step 4:Measure the length of a domino.
Step 5:Measure the time it takes for your row of dominoes to fall down.
6:Compute the average toppling speed for your row of dominoes.
Step 7:Repeat Steps 5 and 6 for at least three more spacings. Include a spacing that is about as small as you can make it and still produce toppling and a spacing that is about as large as you can make it and still produce toppling. Record your data (including data for the first trial) in Data Table A.Step
8:Using a separate piece of graph paper, make a graph of your data by sketching a smooth curve through your data points. Identify the point on the curve where the speed is maximum or minimum (this need not be exactly at one of your measured points).
Length of a domino- 1.75 inches long
Analysis:
Light wooden dominoes show minimum speeds around 80 cm/s.
max= 35.82 dominoes/sec
min= 25.24 dominoes/sec
1.5 dominos should have the fastest speed.
0.62 domino lengths should have the fastest speed at which it travels. the domino to distance ratio is approximately 1: 0.6
Minimum: D=S*T
Time = 60 sec
Speed=25.24 dominoes/sec
D=1514.4 inches
Maximum: D=(S)(T)
Time= 60 sec
Speed=35.82 dominoes/sec
D=2149.2 inches
Conclusion:
In this lab, 50 dominoes were lined up in a line. For each trial we either shortened or elongated the distance between the dominoes--each trial had a set difference in distance between each domino. It was speculated that the further apart the dominoes were, the longer the time it would take for the line to fall, however, the distance and time took fluctuated. A hypothesis for the reason towards why this was would be: “when the dominos were placed too closely the dominos that fell would have amassed less momentum and, therefore, hit the next one lighter than that of dominos spaced more apart, however, when the dominos were too far it would take longer for the dominoes to hit the next one creating the fluctuating speed. This is just a speculation and requires more experimentation to reach a conclusion.
- 1. What is a definition of average speed?
- 2. What are the factors that affect the speed of falling dominoes?
- 3. Why do we use average speed for the pulse running down the dominoes rather than instantaneous speed?
- 4. From your graph, what is the maximum or minimum toppling speed?
Light wooden dominoes show minimum speeds around 80 cm/s.
max= 35.82 dominoes/sec
min= 25.24 dominoes/sec
- 5. What spacing between dominoes do you predict would give the maximum or minimum speed? What is the ratio of this spacing to the length of a domino?
1.5 dominos should have the fastest speed.
0.62 domino lengths should have the fastest speed at which it travels. the domino to distance ratio is approximately 1: 0.6
- 6. At the maximum or minimum toppling speed of the row of dominoes, how long a row of dominoes would be required to make a string that takes one minute to fall?
Minimum: D=S*T
Time = 60 sec
Speed=25.24 dominoes/sec
D=1514.4 inches
Maximum: D=(S)(T)
Time= 60 sec
Speed=35.82 dominoes/sec
D=2149.2 inches
Conclusion:
In this lab, 50 dominoes were lined up in a line. For each trial we either shortened or elongated the distance between the dominoes--each trial had a set difference in distance between each domino. It was speculated that the further apart the dominoes were, the longer the time it would take for the line to fall, however, the distance and time took fluctuated. A hypothesis for the reason towards why this was would be: “when the dominos were placed too closely the dominos that fell would have amassed less momentum and, therefore, hit the next one lighter than that of dominos spaced more apart, however, when the dominos were too far it would take longer for the dominoes to hit the next one creating the fluctuating speed. This is just a speculation and requires more experimentation to reach a conclusion.