Exploring the Metric System and Vectors through Paper Airplanes

Objective

In this hands-on lab, you’ll familiarize yourself with the metric system and the concept of vectors. You’ll design and launch paper airplanes, measure their flight distances and times, and assess the direction and magnitude of each flight.

Materials You’ll Need

• Sheets of paper (A4 or Letter size recommended)
• A tape measure (using metric units)—or else convert to the metric system after each measurement using the relation 1 in = 2.540 cm = 0.0254 m
• Stopwatch
• Compass
• Protractor

Procedure

Follow these steps to complete the lab:

Step 1: Understanding the Metric System and Vectors

Before the challenge begins, understand the importance of the metric system in scientific work and the concept of vectors. Vectors, having both direction and magnitude, are crucial to understanding many physical phenomena.

Read about the metric system here for more information.

Step 2: Embrace the Challenge

Gear up for the Great Paper Airplane Challenge! The challenge involves creating a paper airplane, then measuring the distance it travels and the time it stays in the air.

• Design & Create: Use a sheet of paper to make your airplane. Explore various designs to help your airplane fly the farthest and stay airborne the longest.
• Take Off: One by one, launch your airplanes. Use the tape measure to calculate the distance your airplane travels in meters (or centimeters), and use the stopwatch to measure the flight duration in seconds.
• Iterate: After each round, based on the performance and observations, you’ll get the opportunity to modify your airplanes. Aim to achieve longer flight times and distances.

Step 3: Introducing Vectors

Now, let’s dive into the world of vectors:

We will use two different methods for determining the direction of flight.

• Method 1: Use the compass to determine the direction your airplane flew in measured in degrees from magnetic north.
• Method 2: Use the protractor to determine the angle your plane’s flight path made with a reference line (for example, the line you stood on while throwing the plane).

We also want to know the magnitude of the position vector. For this, you can use the measurements you took in Part 2.

• Magnitude of Flight: The distance your airplane travelled represents the magnitude of the flight vector.

Callect all of this data in a table that looks something like this:

	Plane #1	Plane #2	Plane #3	Plane #4
Magnitude (m)
Direction (compass)
Direction (protractor)

Analyze the different position vectors you’ve collected. Each corresponding magnitude and direction pair tells you where your paper airplanes landed.

Analysis

Analyze the performance of your paper airplane:

• Record the distances, flight times, directions, and angles in a table after each round.
• Discuss the impact of various modifications to the airplanes and how they affected these measurements.
• Discuss how the distance and direction of the airplane’s flight represent a vector and its properties.

In this lab, you’ll not only learn about the metric system and vectors but also gain insights into the scientific process of observing, modifying, and improving. Good luck with your paper airplane designs!

Are you interested in doing more at-home labs like this? Check out more TruLabs here!

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