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A student carried out an experiment to measure the acceleration of a moving trolley - Leaving Cert Physics - Question 1 - 2012
Question 1
A student carried out an experiment to measure the acceleration of a moving trolley. The student measured the initial velocity of the trolley and the final velocity ... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:A student carried out an experiment to measure the acceleration of a moving trolley - Leaving Cert Physics - Question 1 - 2012
Step 1
Draw a diagram to show how the student got the trolley to accelerate.
Answer
To illustrate how the student got the trolley to accelerate, draw the following:
- A flat surface representing the runway where the trolley will move.
- A trolley placed at one end of the runway.
- A detailed depiction showing a ramp setup or any other mechanism (like air track or glider) utilized to give the trolley an initial push.
- Label the diagram with appropriate information like 'trolley', 'runway', and 'method of acceleration'.
Step 2
Describe how the student measured the final velocity of the trolley.
Answer
The student used a motion sensor or distance measuring tool (like a stopwatch and measuring tape) to measure the trolley's final velocity.
- The final velocity can be calculated using the formula:
- Measure the distance the trolley traveled by timing the movement (using 'eleven' dots on a track as a reference) to ensure accuracy over multiple trials.
Step 3
Step 4
How did the student use the measurements to calculate the acceleration of the trolley?
Answer
The student calculated the acceleration using the formula:
- Where:
- is the acceleration,
- is the final velocity,
- is the initial velocity,
- is the time taken for the trolley to move.
- The change in velocity is taken, divided by the time to determine the acceleration.
Step 5
Give a precaution the student took to ensure an accurate result.
Answer
The student ensured an accurate result by repeating the experiment multiple times and calculating the average of the initial and final velocities. This minimizes the error caused by any outlier data points and improves the reliability of the measured values.