This course is taught by Mrs. Chase! In this class, we follow the AP Physics C: Mechanics curriculum and explore physics topics that aren't usually taught in Physics classes. Students often work on labs to derive formulas or prove values of constants. After each chapter, we reinforce the concepts through end-of-chapter problems to model each concept that we've learned throughout the chapter.
This assignment is the first Physics Problem Of the Week we have had. In this assignment, we needed to calculate the distance a puck covers after sliding down a ramp. This used both Kinematics and Dynamics to calculate the distance of the puck's landing spot. We then were asked to optimize the distance it would fall by finding the best angle for the ramp so that the puck covers the greatest distance. We determined this by creating a Python program that increments the angle by 0.01 degrees and stores the highest distance and the angle of the ramp. This problem was really fun as it combined multiple units and I enjoyed working with Harshil and Jotham.
This lab was from the 2nd unit of Physics, Dynamics. In this lab, groups were able to design their own experiment to prove a concept related to Dynamics. My group was looking to find the relationship between acceleration of constant masses and the angle of incline in a modified Atwood's machine. We did this by hanging 210 grams on one end of the modified Atwood's machine, and attached it to the cart using a string. Afterwards, we dropped the weights and continued to increment the angle to compare the differences that the angle had on the cart's acceleration.