Project Description
For this project we were asked to pick a project we have already done earlier in the year, and do it better. My group chose the Rube Goldberg. This task was especially difficult because it is a large task in such a small amount of time. Somehow we were able to make a complete machine, slideshow, and calculations on our board, and at the same time made it really complex. We decided to make our board two sided so one side activates the other, and that was easy to accomplish. The next thing we tried to incorporate was technology. We wanted to have our machine activate a Arduino board to play the "Indiana Jones" theme song. This was complicated, and we had it all planned out, but ran out of time to test it because we couldn't acquire a computer mouse. This setback didn't keep us from giving a killer presentation.
Concepts
In this project we used vocabulary and words that some might not be familiar with. Below I will describe them and show what they are used for and what equation they have.
Distance(d): The amount of space between two points, measured in meters. We used this to find how long our ramps were as well as our screw.
Velocity(v): The rate of covered distance in a direction, measured in meters per second(m/s). Equation: v=🔺d/🔺t. We did not use this because velocity is the acceleration in a direction, and we needed to calculate just acceleration to find force.
Acceleration(a): The rate of change of velocity, measure in meters per second squared(m/s^2). Equation: a=v/t. We used this to find the increase of speed of objects, and we also used this to find force.
Acceleration due to gravity(ag): Gravity is a force between objects in proportion to their mass and inverse to their distance, measured in 9.8m/s^2 on Earth. We used this to calculate free falling objects, because the actual acceleration due to gravity is 9.8m/s^2 on Earth.
Work(w): The amount of energy put into something, measured in Joules(j). Equations: w=🔺KE=🔺PE w=fd. Work showed us how much energy is needed to push the pulleys and levers.
Mass(m): The amount of matter; number of atoms, measured in kilograms(kg). We measured the mass of the metal balls to calculate the force of certain things.
Force(f): The push or pull of an object, measured in Newtons(N), equation: f=ma. We used this to see how much force the marbles applied to different things.
Gravitational Potential Energy(PE): The energy an object has due to it’s height, measured in Joules(j). Equation PEg=m(ag)h W=🔺KE=🔺PE. One of the four energy transfers in our project.
Kinetic Energy(KE): Energy due to motion; measured in Joules(j). Equations: KE= ½ mv^2 W = 🔺KE=🔺PE. Another one of the four energy transfers in our project.
Mechanical Advantage(MA): How much easier a tool makes a task. MA= F w/o machine divided by F w/ machine or d w/ machine divided by d w/o machine. This helped us increase the force applied to certain objects and we needed it to figure out the forces.
Distance(d): The amount of space between two points, measured in meters. We used this to find how long our ramps were as well as our screw.
Velocity(v): The rate of covered distance in a direction, measured in meters per second(m/s). Equation: v=🔺d/🔺t. We did not use this because velocity is the acceleration in a direction, and we needed to calculate just acceleration to find force.
Acceleration(a): The rate of change of velocity, measure in meters per second squared(m/s^2). Equation: a=v/t. We used this to find the increase of speed of objects, and we also used this to find force.
Acceleration due to gravity(ag): Gravity is a force between objects in proportion to their mass and inverse to their distance, measured in 9.8m/s^2 on Earth. We used this to calculate free falling objects, because the actual acceleration due to gravity is 9.8m/s^2 on Earth.
Work(w): The amount of energy put into something, measured in Joules(j). Equations: w=🔺KE=🔺PE w=fd. Work showed us how much energy is needed to push the pulleys and levers.
Mass(m): The amount of matter; number of atoms, measured in kilograms(kg). We measured the mass of the metal balls to calculate the force of certain things.
Force(f): The push or pull of an object, measured in Newtons(N), equation: f=ma. We used this to see how much force the marbles applied to different things.
Gravitational Potential Energy(PE): The energy an object has due to it’s height, measured in Joules(j). Equation PEg=m(ag)h W=🔺KE=🔺PE. One of the four energy transfers in our project.
Kinetic Energy(KE): Energy due to motion; measured in Joules(j). Equations: KE= ½ mv^2 W = 🔺KE=🔺PE. Another one of the four energy transfers in our project.
Mechanical Advantage(MA): How much easier a tool makes a task. MA= F w/o machine divided by F w/ machine or d w/ machine divided by d w/o machine. This helped us increase the force applied to certain objects and we needed it to figure out the forces.
Reflection
This project was ultimately a success. With some minor setbacks we were able to apply what we knew already to make our Rube Goldberg machine one of a kind. We knew going in that our final plan was going to be hard to accomplish, but we worked hard until the end. The project was not all positive. First, a couple days in we had a day where nearly nothing was accomplished, this use of time set us back. Second, we did not plan well, which led to confusion during the build. For example, we didn't accomplish anything the first day which set us back from all the other groups. Thirdly, our work ethic was not always great. An example of this is that everyday we would clean up early. I wished we had worked for more time, because then we could actually have a finishing product. Some good things are that all of us got along well. We all are friends, and that made working easier. Next, we all wanted to get our project done, which helped us get motivated to work hard everyday. Finally, we encouraged each other to do our best work. I motivated the group for the most part, but other members motivated themselves as well. Overall, this project was very successful, fun, and a great experience, that linked all our knowledge of freshman year physics, back to the first project we ever did in the STEM program.