What is Work?

Part I:Compare the work done to lift different masses to the same height.

Materials

  • 3 tiles
  • Spring scale
  • Meter stick

Procedure:

  1. Attach the spring scale hook to the middle tile rubber band.
  2. Lift the tile 10cm (0.1m). Measure how many Newtons (N) of force was necessary to lift the tile. Record on data table 1.
  3. Attach the bottom tile under the middle one. Repeat above procedure.
  4. Attach the top tile over the middle one. Repeat above procedure.
  5. Calculate the amount of work done to lift the tiles.

Part II:Compare the work done to lift one mass to different heights.

Materials

  • 3 tiles
  • Spring scale
  • Meter stick

Procedure:

  1. Using all 3 tiles, attach the spring scale to the middle tile rubber band.
  2. Lift the tiles 10cm (0.1m). Record the force in Newtons (N) and the distance in meters on data table 2.
  3. Repeat the above procedure with a distance of 20 cm and 30 cm.
  4. Calculate the amount of work done to lift the tiles to the different heights.

Part III: How do simple machines make work easier?

Materials

  • 3 tiles
  • Spring scale
  • Meter stick
  • Board
  • Books

Procedure

  1. Starting with all 3 tiles attached, lift the tiles 10cm (0.1m) and record the force on data table 3.
  2. Lean the board on the books so the 0.2m mark is at the edge of the books. Drag the tiles smoothly up the ramp to find out the force in Newtons. Record in data table 3.
  3. Move the board so the 0.4m mark is at the edge of the books. Repeat the above procedure.
  4. Move the board so the 0.6m mark is at the edge of the books. Repeat the above procedure.
  5. Calculate the amount of work done and record on data table.

What is Work?

Part I:Compare the work done to lift different masses to the same height.

Problem—How does the weight (force) of an object affect the work done?

Informal Hypothesis:______

Formal Hypothesis:______

______

Materials and Procedure—See directions page

Design of Experiment

Independent Variable--______

Dependent Variable--______

Constants--______

Data Table 1

W = F x DWork Done Lifting Different Masses

Number of Tiles / Force (Newtons--N) / Distance (meter—m) / Work (Joules—J)
1 (middle)
2 (add bottom)
3 (add top)

Part II:Compare the work done to lift one mass to different heights.

Problem—How does the distance an object is lifted affect the work done?

Informal Hypothesis:______

Formal Hypothesis:______

______

Materials and Procedure—See directions page

Design of Experiment

Independent Variable--______

Dependent Variable--______

Constants--______

Data Table 2

W = F x DWork Done Lifting an Object Different Heights

Distance (meter—m) / Force (Newtons--N) / Work (Joules—J)

Part III: How do simple machines make work easier?

Data Table 3—Using 3 tiles

W = F x DWork Done Using an Inclined Plane (3 tiles)

Distance (meter—m) / Force (Newtons--N) / Work (Joules—J)
.1 (lift)
.2 (ramp)
.4 (ramp)
.6 (ramp)

Reflections and Conclusions:

  1. When you lifted the different number of tiles straight up (part I), what changed each time you increased the load? How did that affect the work you did?______

______

______

______

  1. When you lifted the 3 tiles to greater heights (part II), what happened to the amount of work done? ______
  2. When you used the longer ramps (part III), what happened to the force you had to use to pull the tiles up to the height of 0.1 m (10cm)?______

______

  1. What happened to the amount of work done when using the ramps as compared to just lifting the tiles?

______

  1. Why did it take more work to use the ramp than to just lift the tiles?______

______

______

  1. How do simple machines make work easier? ______

______

______

______