Introduction

Water drains from an open funnel. How is the volume of water changing with time? At what rate is the water level decreasing? How long will it take for the funnel to drain completely? These are a few questions that can be investigated by collecting weight data for a draining funnel, and then developing a mathematical model to describe the data.

In this activity, you will use a force sensor to measure the weight of a water-filled funnel as it drains. The weight versus time data can be graphed and analyzed using statistical features.

Objectives

  • Record weight versus time data for a draining funnel.
  • Describe the data using concepts of intercept and slope of a linear function.