The purpose of this project was to start using equations to determine what gravity measured. It is known to be about 9.8 m/s^2 but with these experiments, we were given the challenge to dive in and see how the gravity constant would change with different heights. The goal was to conduct 10 tests to compare the gravity calculated behind each one and see how that correlated with the gravity measurement given to us.
Conducting the Experiment
First, we taped a paper ruler against the leg of a table which was perpendicular to the floor. The height was 250 mm from the ground. Then, we placed a stop watch next to it to be able to time the drop. Using a paperclip, we lined it vertically over the 250 mm and with the stop watch running, we would drop the paperclip and film it using a slow motion camera. Next we created a table to input all of our results. We had a few outliers but for the most part, I was surprised how close we were to the actual value of gravity!
The main equation that we used was to find the acceleration which was: (2*distance)/(time^2). Distance remained constant at 0.25 m and the time was calculated by the time it ended subtracted by the time it dropped.
Results
Our error percentage was about 20% which is kind of a lot. However, considering we were in a classroom with limited supplies and didn't have the most precise tools, I think we did rather well! It was hard to get every experiment to be exact but we were close!