Why Does Acceleration Vary in a Ramp Experiment?

AI Thread Summary
The discussion centers on the variability of acceleration observed in a ramp experiment where a cart rolls down an inclined ramp with tickertape attached. Participants note that the acceleration fluctuates instead of remaining constant, raising questions about potential experimental errors. Factors such as non-uniform friction along the ramp and the opposing force from the tickertape are suggested as possible causes for these variations. The importance of diagramming the problem and analyzing the forces acting on the cart is emphasized to better understand the discrepancies in acceleration. Understanding these elements is crucial for accurate experimental outcomes.
jnimagine
Messages
176
Reaction score
0
When the cart was rolled down a ramp with tickertape attached to it and the acceleration was calculated using the average velocity, the acceleration seem to be going up and down instead of staying the same... for example, ot goes from 0.5 to 0.2 then to 0.9 and so on...shouldn't they be constant? if they should be what are some experimental errors that could have caused this?
 
Physics news on Phys.org
you are talking about the a car with a roll of paper atached to a machine that make dots in a roll of paper??
is the ramp inclined?? Is the paper making an opposite force?

Explain the Experiment first...
 
Littlepig said:
you are talking about the a car with a roll of paper atached to a machine that make dots in a roll of paper??
is the ramp inclined?? Is the paper making an opposite force?

Explain the Experiment first...

yes the ramp is inclined and the tickertape is attached to the back of the cart as it rolls down.
 
surely friction is not constant all over the ramp
 
well, than you know what forces are acting on the car... First make the diagram of the problem, considering the ideal experience...than, you will analyze what can problaby make a variation of aceleration..
 

Thread 'Rolling without slipping on a curved surface'

Kindly see the attached pdf. My attempt to solve it, is in it. I'm wondering if my solution is right. My idea is this: At any point of time, the ball may be assumed to be at an incline which is at an angle of θ(kindly see both the pics in the pdf file). The value of θ will continuously change and so will the value of friction. I'm not able to figure out, why my solution is wrong, if it is wrong .
View full post »

Thread 'Struggling to understand the concept of this question (ice cube in water optics question)'

TL;DR Summary: I came across this question from a Sri Lankan A-level textbook. Question - An ice cube with a length of 10 cm is immersed in water at 0 °C. An observer observes the ice cube from the water, and it seems to be 7.75 cm long. If the refractive index of water is 4/3, find the height of the ice cube immersed in the water. I could not understand how the apparent height of the ice cube in the water depends on the height of the ice cube immersed in the water. Does anyone have an...
View full post »

Similar threads

Why is the direction of kinetic/static friction up a ramp?
Replies
7
Views
1K
Calculating air resistance for a cart rolling down a ramp
Replies
8
Views
2K
Question on calculated friction force between a ramp and a cart
Replies
2
Views
4K
Calculating acceleration of ball rolling down ramp
Replies
6
Views
12K
Constant velocity, constant acceleration?
Replies
11
Views
3K
Does mass affect acceleration on a slope?
Replies
10
Views
14K
Momentum: why don't the two carts become one?
Replies
32
Views
1K
Is acceleration constant when a disk is rolling down a ramp?
Replies
3
Views
2K
Calculating Spring Stretch on a Ramp with Varying Acceleration and Friction
Replies
3
Views
2K
Stopping Distance affected by Mass of Cart on Inclined Plane
Replies
1
Views
4K

Hot Threads

Recent Insights

Back
Top