Key words: Speed,force,acceleration,gravity,weight,friction,faster,heavier

Marbles on a Ramp
By:
Ella Onstott

QUESTION: What did you learn from this experiment?

I learned that the more the marble weighs the more acceleration. I also learned that if you were to put some sort of oil on your ramp there would be less friction between the marble and the ramp so the marble would have a lot of speed. I learned that the marble only moves because of gravity, gravity is the force that pulls the marble down. The marble goes faster more at the middle of the ramp and slower at the beginning.

QUESTION: How does what you learned apply to your pinball machine?

The gravity (the force) that pulls the marble down the ramp can also pull the steel marble down the pinball machine, it can pull the steel marble to the flippers. If we want the marble to go faster we could use a heavy one, because in our experiment the heavier marble went faster so if we use a heavier marble it will go faster, thats why we will use a steel marble instead of a glass marble. The steel marble also can have a lot of acceleration because of gravity and it’s weight, the more the steel marble weights the more acceleration it has.

Trial 1
Trial 2
Trial 3
Trial 4
Trial 5
Average
class average
marble 1
(Biggest)
1.8
2.1
2.4
2.2
2.5
22
2.08
marble 2
(Medium)
2.3
2.2
1.8
2.5
2.6
22
2.12
marble 3
(Smallest)
2.1
2.4
2.5
1.9
2.1
26
2.14

Story about Science when I didn’t even expect it 🙂

One time a few years ago we went to Crystal Mountain to ski with some of our close family friends. It was me and my dads turn to get off the ski lift, we both hopped off and headed to the hill. Once we got to the right hill we both said ready set GO!!! We both took off and we both were going pretty fast but I didn’t know why he was always in front of me. Every time I went with him he always beat me. (I like to beat my dad sometimes 🙂
But now that I did this experiment I know why he always beats me.(my older brother beats me too) I didn’t even expect to have a little science on this trip. It’s because of the mass that pulls you and me down, the more mass on a human or an object the faster it or (he – she) will go. There is science in this short story the more mass an all but theres also another point in science in this story, the friction. The friction between you and the ice – snow, there is very little friction between your skis and the ice, thats why you slip when you walk or run on ice. So thats why you turn to slow down on a hill usually, and thats why you might go faster than usual when you go down an icy part of the hill or mountain.
That was my TRUE story about science when I didn’t even expect it. 🙂