Experimental Design and Force

In this experiment a paper cup hangs from a string tied to a single uncooked spaghetti noodle. The student measures and records the mass of a penny. The student then adds pennies to the paper cup one at a time. Which question is the student most likely trying to answer with this investigation?

• How many spaghetti noodles will it take to hold up the mass of a penny?

• How much force will it take to break the spaghetti noodle?

• How long should the string that holds the paper cup be in order to support the greatest mass of pennies?

• How does the distance between the two chairs affect the amount of force it takes for the spaghetti noodle to break?

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

Students design an experiment to determine how much force is needed to move blocks of wood of different masses slowly across a lab table. Which procedure should students include in their design?

• Conduct five trials, using a different scale to pull each block of wood

• Conduct five trials, pulling a different side of each block each time

• Conduct five trials, using a different table for each trial

• Conduct five trials, pulling each block of wood in the same way for each trial

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

The diagrams show two trials of an experiment in which a spring scale was used to measure force. This experiment can be used to determine —

• how mass affects the force needed to move objects

• how force affects the mass of two objects

• how the force used to pull a dictionary affects the mass of a box of marbles

• how the mass of a box of marbles affects the mass of a dictionary

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

A student designs an experiment to test the effect of the width of a piece of elastic on the elastic’s ability to stretch. The student selects four pieces of elastic with different widths but the same length. The student then attaches blocks with different masses to the pieces of elastic. The results of the student’s experiment are shown below. What should the student do to improve this experiment?

• Use blocks of equal mass on the four pieces of elastic

• Use blocks with enough mass to cause the four pieces of elastic to break

• Use more than four pieces of elastic and four blocks

• Use four pieces of elastic with different lengths but the same width

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

A student observes that the craters on the moon are different sizes. The student designs an experiment to study the formation of craters. The materials for the experiment are marbles and a pan of flour. The student makes a hypothesis that the size of the craters made on the surface of the flour will depend on the height from which the marble is dropped. Some of the steps in the student's experiment are described below. 1. Fill a round pan with flour 2. Smooth out the flour in the pan 3. 4. For each trial, measure the size of the crater formed and then smooth out the flour again Which of these is most likely Step 3 in the student's experiment?

• Drop the same marble from different heights into the pan of flour

• Drop marbles of different masses from the same height into the pan of flour

• Drop marbles of different sizes from different heights into the pan of flour

• Drop a single marble one time into the pan of flour

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

A student uses a spring scale to pull a 50-gram block horizontally across a wood desk. Then the student pulls the block the same distance across surfaces of carpet, sandpaper, and glass.

• How do blocks of different sizes react to force?

• How do different surfaces affect the amount of force needed to move a block?

• How do blocks affect spring scales?

• How does the mass of a block change when it is pulled across a desk?

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

What is force?

• The ability to do work

• A push or pull on an object

• The speed of an object

• The distance an object travels

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-1

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

What is motion?

• The direction an object faces

• The color change of an object

• The change in position of an object

• The smell of an object

Tags

NGSS.3-PS2-1

NGSS.3-PS2-2

Which of the following is NOT a type of force?

• Gravity

• Friction

• Magnetism

• Color

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-4

If you slide a hockey puck on ice, it eventually stops because of:

• Gravity

• Magnetism

• Friction

• Air resistance

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2