Del Mar

8th Grade Science

Name Luke Elders Date 9-23-14 Per 3

Goals - To develop the skills of a scientist

by reviewing the scientific method.

graphing with independent variable as x axis, and dependent
variable as y axis
Introducing accuracy, reproducibility and significant figures

Problem

What affects the period of a pendulum?

Materials

period = the time a pendulum swings back and forth once

stand, string, washers, big paperclips, rulers, stop watch

Hypothesis
I think that the start angle will affect the period of

a pendulum by increasing the period as the start angle

increases.
Therefore, my independent variable is start height.

Independent variable = manipulated variable-what I am changing

My dependent variable is pendulum period.

Dependent variable = responding variable -what I am measuring

My controlled variables are: The mass of the bob and the

length of the string.

________________________________________________________________________________
_______________
Controlled variables are everything I am keeping the same

Procedure

(note delete this section when turning in your assignment)

1.

Decide who will be the timer, pendulum releaser and recorder. Do not
change these roles during the trials
2. Tie one end of a string to a clamp on a stand. Tie the other end to a large
paper clip. Pull out one side of the paper clip to serve as a hook.
3. Place a metal washer on the hook, and let it hang down. If necessary,
raise
the clamp so that the bob swings freely.
4. Record the values of your controlled variables (the variable you are not
testing.)
The controlled variables are the variables you are not changing
these could include mass of bob, length of pendulum, start

height of the bob

5. Release the bob gently, without pushing it. During a complete swing, the
bob
will move from its starting position and back again. Your partner should
time
5 complete swings.
6. Check your experiment for accuracy (have you accurately counted the
swings? etc.) and reproducibility (run the test again - did you get
approximately the same answer?)
7. Once you are convinced your data is accurate and reproducible, record
the time for 5 swings. Then divide that time by 5 to find the average time
for one swing.
8. Repeat steps 5 -7, changing your independent variable. -Make sure
you do not change the values of your controlled variables and make sure
your incremental change is large enough.

Starting Data
Independent
Variable

Starting Value

Incremental change

Starting height

40

Dependent variable = the period of the pendulum (swing time)

Controlled Variables
Length of the string

Value
23.1 cm

Mass of bob

14.8 gram

Experimental Data
Trial

Average time
for 5 swings
(s)

The Period (s)

5.21
secs

5.20
seconds

1.04
seconds

5.21
secs
5.28
secs
5.45
secs
5.79
secs

5.21
seconds
5.295
seconds
5.40
seconds
5.735
seconds

1.042
seconds
1.059
seconds
1.08
seconds
1.147
seconds

Independent
variable =
starting height

Time of 5 swings
(s)

40

5.19
secs.

30

20

10

5.21
secs
5.31
secs.
5.35
secs.
5.68
secs

Test 1

Test

(Average time
for 1 swing)

Analyze and Conclude

(note delete this section when turning in your

assignment)

The period of a pendulum is the time from the starting

point to the end of the swing and back to the starting point.
In this lab we studied the time of five swings from the start
height of the pendulum using a protractor, the average time
for five swings, and the average time for one swing. I think
that the start angle will affect the period of a pendulum by
increasing the period as the start angle increases. Therefore,
my independent variable is the start height my dependent
variable is the pendulum period, and my controlled variables
are: The mass of the bob and the length of the string. When
changing the start height, we used the protractor ending
from the flat level of the string (0). Using a timer, we
calculated the time it would take for the bob to swing back
and forth each time depending on how high it would start at.
We kept our controlled variables the same by keeping the
same person measure, set the height of the bob, and double
check the perfection of the height every time. We had five
starting heights to follow by: 40, 30, 20, 10, and 0. We
ended up with an average time of 5.20 seconds for 40, 5.21
seconds for 30, 5.295 seconds for 20, 5.40 seconds for 10,
and 5.753 seconds for 0. My data shows that the average
times for each height made sense and my data shows that
my group successfully completed the lab. This data shows
that my hypothesis was correct, and that I ran the

experiment as planned. I can compare my groups data #5 to

group #7. Like theirs, the start height of the pendulum
(independent variable) didnt affect any times that stood out.
Overall my experiment was run well, and was very similar to
group #7. What really affects the period of a pendulum are
the gravity, the start height, and the length of the pendulum
string. My group and all the other groups came to the same
conclusion that gravity, the start height, and the length of the
pendulum, are the main aspects that affect the pendulum
period. There could be errors in my data. Some of them
would include: our data wouldnt be accurate because the
start height might not have been accurate, and our group
couldve had different ways of dropping the pendulum from
the start height. In conclusion the period of the pendulum is
affected by the gravity, starting height, and length of the
string.