Download David Walter

Name: _______________________________ Period: ___ Group: ___ Center: ___
Newton’s Second Law of Motion
To start the simulator:
 Click the link https://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/forces-and-motion
 Click the
button and then the “Run” button on the dialog box
To set up the simulator:
 Select the “Force Graphs” Tab
 On the right you will find selection boxes. Select the following:
 Turn off friction - select the “ice” circle for “Friction”.
 Click on the buttons “Graph Acceleration”, “Graph Velocity” and “Graph
Position”.
Procedure:
 Select the refrigerator from the “Choose an Object” drop down menu
 Fill in the force by clicking on the Fapplied box on the left side of the page.
Type in “100”.
 Click the Play button to start the simulation.
 Click “Pause” just before the fridge hits the wall.
 Use the zoom in & out buttons to adjust the size of the
graph to see all the data
 Answer questions 1-3 below.
 You can use the Playback feature if you need to
 Press “Clear” to reset the simulation after you have gathered and
recorded your data
1. Observe the Position vs. Time graph. Describe how the position of the object changes over time.
2. Observe the Velocity vs. Time graph. Describe how the velocity of the object changes over time.
3. Now observe the Acceleration vs. Time graph. What do you notice about the acceleration of the
object as the force remains constant?
4. Let’s practice collecting data selecting the objects below. On the third round you fill in your
choices.
Object
Refrigerator
Sleepy Dog
Force (N)
100
20
Mass (kg)
200
25
Acceleration (m/s2)
Questions:
1. Based on your data and your observations, create an equation that relates mass, force and
acceleration. Use the simulation to test your equation. Check with your teacher.
2. Fill in the following “POWER SHAPE” (circle/triangle) using the variables from your equation.
Select the textbook and apply a 10 Newton force to it.
5. Now turn friction back on by setting the Friction box to “Wood”
6. Play around some more with the simulation.
7. Record some of your data in the data table below.
Data Table 3
Object
Force (N)
Mass (kg)
Acceleration (m/s2)
Questions:
3. How does friction affect the validity of your equation from question #1 on the first side? (Does the
equation still work?
Now try the following:
8. Select the “Sum of Forces” in the Forces box on the right AND the Fsum box on the left. Sum of
Forces is also know as Net Force.
Use the same tests that you did in the previous data table but now fill in the additional information:
Object
Fapplied (N)
Ffriction (N)
Fsum or Fnet (N)
Mass (kg)
Questions:
4. Knowing that the Fapplied is opposite Ffriction, how is Fsum or Fnet calculated?
5. Now evaluate your results again. Does the formula still work?
6. Explain what our formula should say instead of just Force = mass x acceleration.
Acceleration
(m/s2)