Do Now for 5/14/13 Take out write up for E82 HW: Complete analysis

E82 Braking Distance

• • • • • •

Today’s Target: I will be able to observe and state the effects of increased friction on the braking distance of a car.

Introduce Activity Lab set up Gather data Analysis Key Points

E82 Braking Distance

• • •

We are going to look at some of the features designed to slow a car down and prevent collisions from happening.

Braking Distance – The distance a vehicle travels in the time between the moment the brakes are applied and the moment the car comes to a stop.

A vehicle’s brakes cause the car to stop by increasing friction.

E82 Braking Distance

• • • •

Set up

–

When you cover the track with cloth, will the cart’s braking distance become longer or shorter?

We will investigate what happens to a cart’s breaking distance when it hits the cloth “brakes” at different speeds.

The higher the cart is released, the faster it is travelling at the bottom of the ramp.

What variables are the same? What variable(s) are different?

E82 Braking Distance

E82 Braking Distance

• • • •

1. In this model of a stopping car: a. What does the cloth represent?

– The cloth models the brakes on a real vehicle.

b. List some strengths and weaknesses of this model.

– This is a good model because it adequately slows down the cart. But it is not representative of the real braking mechanism in a car.

– For example, the driver of a car can apply the brakes with a varied force when pressing the pedal, while the model provides a more constant frictional force.

E82 Braking Distance

•

2. What effect does speed have on the braking distance? Explain, using evidence from this activity.

– As the initial speed was increased, the braking distance also increased. For example, from Notch C the cart traveled 29 cm before stopping. From the Notch A the cart traveled 69 cm before stopping. Small changes in initial speed resulted in very large changes in distance.

E82 Braking Distance

• • •

3. (RE ASSESSMENT) Does the evidence you gathered in this investigation support the statement below? Use evidence from you investigation to explain why or why not.

A car moving at 55 mph needs less distance to stop than an identical car moving at 45 mph.

EXPANDED ANSWER

E82 Braking Distance

•

4. Reflection: Why do you think speeding is a factor in a high percentage of car accidents?

– There may be many reasons speed is involved in a high number of fatalities. This activity showed that the faster a car is traveling, the more distance it takes it to come to a stop. This makes it more likely that the car will hit something. – Also, if after braking the car does hit something, a speeding car will be traveling faster than it would have been had it been traveling more slowly initially. – Evidence from Activity 76, “Speed and Collisions,” showed that collisions at higher speeds result in greater forces during impact that are more likely to cause serious damage and fatalities.

E82 Braking Distance – Key Points

• • • • 1. Friction is a force that will cause changes in the speed of an object’s motion.

2. The motion of an object can be described by its position, direction of motion, and speed. 3. Students should be able to design and conduct appropriate scientific investigations. This may include the use of multiple trials. 4. Good experimental design requires keeping as many variables as possible the same—except for the one being tested—so that any results can be ascribed to the variable changed.