Our physics course, taught by Ms. Chase, closely follows the AP Physics curriculum. Through lectures, labs, and demonstations, we learn the fundamental sciences of matter.
One of my favorite challenges this year was the multi-step rocket problem, a capstone for our projectiles unit. It combined concepts from kinematics and projectiles, adding complexity to the problem. A rocket launched over level ground burns its engine for a set time, transitions into projectile motion, and deploys a parachute after dropping a specific distance, with wind affecting its descent. Our goal was to calculate its x-displacement from the starting position. This problem was when physics truly "clicked" for me, and I loved solving it.
This Problem of the Week (POW) for physics followed our dynamics unit. Here, I worked with Lauren Kim and Anh Dao to calculate the distance a puck would travel after sliding off a counter and optimizing a ramp angle to maximize the horizontal displacement. After using kinematics, projectile motion, and dynamics to solve the problem, we used an Excel spreadsheet to verify our answer. You can see the spreadsheet here! (clicking will download the xlsx to your device).