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Engineers in Training 2003
Shodor > SUCCEED > Workshops > Archive > Engineers in Training 2003

Garrett started the class by showing the students a long, flexible insulation foam tube that had a groove cut in it, explaining that the tube would be a track for a marble. The students learned about the difference between velocity and speed. He separated them into teams of three and handed each team a cup, a similar tube, and a measuring tape. They taped one end of the tube to the table and the other end to the cup. The cup was placed on the floor to create a jump. One student rolled a marble down the track while the other two students caught the marble and marked where it landed. The students started the marble at various points on the track and observed the difference in where the marble landed. They recorded the height of the marble's starting point and how far the marble landed from the jump.

After snack, the teams plotted the data they recorded on a graphing applet. The applet showed them the velocity of the marble at different points and the path of the marble through the air. They recorded the initial velocity on the same piece of paper that they recorded their other data on. Garrett showed them formulas for measuring kinetic and potential energy. The students then put the formulas into the applet, which graphed a line. This line told them the velocity a marble would gain, when started from any point on the track. Garrett had each team place two cups at any distance from the jump. They measured the distance from the jump and entered it on the applet. The applet calculated the velocity it would take to get the marble in the cup. When they entered the neccessary velocity on the applet, it projected the starting point that would allow the marble to attain enough velocity to land in the cup. After the students finished the activity, they received certificates and t-shirts for completing the course.