Paper+Surface+Area

Group Members: Jen and Jill

=Goal: How does surface area affect travel time while falling?=

Matericals:
1. Paper 2. Timer 3. Balcony 4. Video Camera 5. Logger Pro 6. Meter Sticks 7. String 8. Paper clip

Procedure:
1.Measure height of balcony by dropping string off side 2. Measure string with meter stick 3. Get a piece of paper 4. Measure paper dimensions 5. Attach paper clip to paper 6. Drop from top of balcony 7. Measure length of time from the paper leaving hand to tounching the ground with stopwatch 8. Fold paper in half 9. Repeat steps 4-7 10. Repeat steps 8-9 3 more times 11. Collect data and record paper falling 12. Use Logger Pro to enter time (s) and number of folds 13. Compare results with trials using different surface areas

Variables:
Controlled: mass of paper and distance it falls Independent: number of folds Dependent: length of time it takes to touch the ground

Data:
mass of paper and paperclip: 5g Height of balcony: 3.6223 m Veloticy: (displacement/time)


 * Number of folds || Time (s) || Dimensions || Velocity (m/s) ||
 * 0 || 3.51 || 8.5 x 11 || 1.03 ||
 * 1 || 2.80 || 5.5 x 8.5 || 1.29 ||
 * 2 || 1.83 || 4.25 x 5.5 || 1.98 ||
 * 3 || 1.52 || 2.75 x 4.25 || 2.38 ||
 * 4 || 1.13 || 2.25 x 2.75 || 3.21 ||
 * 5 || 1.05 || 1.5 x 2.25 || 3.45 ||

Graph Observations:
The Graph decreases every time the paper is folded.

Conclusion:
When you decrease the surface area, the time it takes the paper to fall will also decrease. According to our graph, the change in folds verses the change in time has a linear relationship.Through Logger Pro we were able to come up with the linear equation of y=-0.5034x+3.232. With this equation we can predict how long it would take for paper folded six times or more to hit the ground. When we folded the paper once, the velocity was 1.29 m/s. When we folded the paper five times, the velocity was 3.45 m/s. As the velocity increases, the time decreases. We can conclude that the more times you fold the paper, the more the velocity increases. Also, with one fold the surface area is 46.75 in^2. With five folds, the surface area is 3.375 in^2. The less surface area, the less air resistance. The air resistance is what keeps the paper from falling at the same rate no matter what the dimmensions are. From this data we can result that the more you fold the paper, or reduce the surface area, the less time it takes for it to hit the ground.