DT Graph Lab
DT Graph Lab
Safety Procedures
1. Perform this experiment, in a clear area. Moving masses can cause serious
injury.
2. Tie back long hair, secure loose clothing, and remove loose jewellery to
prevent their being caught in moving or rotating parts.
Goal
• To observe objects moving at a constant speed .
• To graph the relationships between distance and time for moving objects.
• Interpret graph relating distance and time for moving objects.
Materials
Battery operated toy car
Block, book or clay
Graph paper
Masking tape
Metal ball
Meterstick
Stopwatch
Track
Wooden block
Procedure
1. To perform the experiment find a clear, flat surface free of obstacles and traffic.
Choose a starting point for your car. Mark this point with a masking tape, and
label it “starting point”
2. Start the car and place it on the starting point. Release the car ( your lab partner
should start the stop watch at the same time). Let the car move in a straight line
for 2.0 s. Notice where the car is after 2.0s. Repeat for several trials, until you
find the point that the car consistenly crosses after 2.0s. Mark this point with
masking tape and label it “0.00m”. Through out this experiment, start the car at
the original starting point, and begin to measure the distance and time of the
car’s motion when the car crosses the 0.00 m mark.
1
This lab has been taken from Holt Physics Laboratory manual and modified by Jagdeep Bhandal
3. Start the car, and place it on the floor at the starting point. Observe the car as it
moves. Be sure to start the stopwatch as the car crosses the 0.00 m mark.
1.
4. After 10.0 s, mark the position of the car with the masking tape. Label this
mark “10.0s”
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 for 9.0s to 2.0s. Label each point.
6. With the meterstick measure the exact distance from the 0.00m mark to each
timed positon mark.
7. For each position marked with tape, record the position and time in the
notebook, using the appropriate SI units.
8. If your car has a multiple speed switch, set the car at a new speed and repeat
steps 3-7.
Observations
2
This lab has been taken from Holt Physics Laboratory manual and modified by Jagdeep Bhandal
Analysis
1. Did the car speed up or slow down as it traveled, or did it maintain the same
speed? How can you tell?