Physics Innovative Uses

To help his physics students understand the concept of electromagnetic (EM) induction, Brian Lamore, physics teacher at The Chinquapin School in Highlands, TX, devised an experiment involving strong neodymium (Nd) magnets, #28 magnet wire, and the Vernier Instrumentation Amplifier. To connect the concept with a relevant application, Brian used older hard drives and floppy disks…

Subjects: Physics

Heather M. Whitney, Ph.D., of Wheaton College in Wheaton, IL, set out to estimate the acceleration of the infamous “Old Spice Guy” from television and YouTube ads. She found this inspiration while participating in a LivePhoto workshop here at Vernier headquarters. Whitney used video analysis in Logger Pro to track points on the man’s body…

Subjects: Physics

Professor Richard G. Born, from Northern Illinois University, devised an experiment to study hysteresis, the delay of time between a force being placed upon a system and the exhibited reaction. Born placed a 7 inch rubber band on a Vernier Dual-Range Force Sensor, with a Motion Detector placed on the floor below the rubber band.…

Subjects: Physics

With the guidance of instructors Richard Piccioni and Craig Butz, high school students from The Bay School of San Francisco launched a 2.3 meter (8 ft) helium balloon equipped with a video camera, Vernier Temperature and Gas Pressure Sensors, and Vernier LabPro into the atmosphere. The flight lasted 1 hour and 22 minutes, reaching an…

Subjects: Physics

We were intrigued by an article in the November 2009 issue of The Physics Teacher entitled “Inexpensive Strobe-Like Photographs” by Emil L. Medeiros, O dilon A.P. Tavares and Sergio B. Durate. The article describes a great way to create strobe-like photographs with simple video cameras, or with still digital cameras that have a movie mode.…

Subjects: Physics

Keith Michaelsen, Southington High School, Southington, CT, contacted us to discuss ways to show students that the impulse delivered during an elastic collision is twice the impulse delivered by an inelastic collision. This is a counterintuitive concept, and performing an experiment to observe this can be a challenge. The main issues are: To compare the…

Subjects: Physics

Here’s a novel use of Logger Pro‘s video analysis and vector analysis tools. The Vail Ski and Snowboard Academy uses Vernier tools to help their student athletes analyze their motion on the race course and in the terrain park. Miles McGeehan, physics instructor, has developed a course titled Ski Physics. Each week, students address a…

Subjects: Physics

Nick Glembotski, an engineering student at San Diego State, recently used our Current Sensor, Voltage Probe, and redesigned Surface Temperature Sensor (which can be used in air or water) to investigate whether the efficiency of solar panels can be improved by cooling the panels by spraying them with a mist. In his tests, the answer…

Subjects: Physics

Don’t have hundreds of dollars to spend on an expensive adiabatic gas law device? Jamie Benigna in Birmingham, MI came up with a way to build one using a Gas Pressure Sensor, syringe, Surface Temperature Sensor, and some hot glue. To make one yourself, simply drill a small hole in the syringe, insert the the…

Subjects: Physics

We decided to do some home testing of a standard basement freezer with the Watts Up Pro power meter. How much energy is used, and how cold does the freezer get when the compressor is running? To find out, we used a LabQuest and a Watts Up Pro to log the data over a 48-hour…

Subjects: Physics