Create an original physics lab activity (100 points for a lab manual and 100 points for a sample, i.e., a perfect report.) Specify a target, i.e., a narrow objective so that it can be verified with a simple (DIY) experiment or/and simulation. Find supportive theoretical backgrounds from some standard textbooks. Write a lab manual, following the standard format. You may find a fantastic series of lab manuals here (Link will open in new tab.) Download here (Link will open in this tab.). If you submit a lab-manual only, your score is at most 100 points, but if you also perform a demo experiment (e.g., video tutorial), writing a sample report, you may earn another 100 points. Your target must be either an easy DIY style or an item from the following simulations: https://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulations/filter?subjects＝physics&type＝html,prototype (Links to an external site.) (Link will open in new tab.) (Choose from phys 1 area.) If you may find another simulation, not from this list, it′s totally fine! Share your ideas! Here is a skelton (i.e., not full-bodied) example: Objective: simple harmonic oscillator and gravity g (gstandard ＝ 9.80 m/s2) Theoretical background (based on https://openstax.org/books/college-physics/pages/16-4-the-simple-pendulum (Links to an external site.) (Link will open in new tab.) YOU provide a few pages of self-contained theoretical background.) Procedure (see below) Remarks Questions, Exercise, Problems Procedure (a brief example): Find a mass and string to make a pendulum. Measure the mass and string length, record the values (you may use the assigned values, say 10 cm, 20 cm, … , 50 cm). Keeping the angle small (˂ 10 degrees) so that we may apply the small-angle approximation (see equation (16.23)), determine periods. You must count 10-20 cycles. Using equation (16.30), determine g for a specific length. Repeat the whole process for different lengths. Now you have 5 g values; obtain the average value. Compare with the standard value to estimate error. Discuss possible error sources. Writing equation (16.30) as L ＝ (g/(4 pi^2)) * T^2, we can determine g by means of the slope technique. Find gslope , and estimate error. Questions Verify the small-angle approximation: determine the differences between x and sin(x) for x ＝ 1 deg, 2 deg, … 10 deg. Discuss the mass-dependence (if we change the mass, what can we expect for the outcomes?) Hint: If you browse openstax, you may find a section with phet-simulator, e.g., https://openstax.org/books/college-physics/pages/8-4-elastic-collisions-in-one-dimension (Links to an external site.) (Link will open in new tab.) You can verify the example(s) with simulator and calculation.
