Lever Lab Report

Levers

Title: Lever Lab

Purpose: To observe how a lever can measure mass.

Materials and Methods: The materials used in this lab include:

-sheet of paper

-3 coins (quarter, dime, nickel)

-balance

-metric ruler

First, a data table was prepared to record the results. Then, a lever was made by folding the paper into a strip three centimeters wide by 28 centimeters long. The observer then marked a line two centimeters form one end of the paper strip and labeled it resistance. The other end of the paper strip was then slid over the edge of a table until the it began to teeter on the edge. The paper at the edge of the table was labeled the effort line. Next, the mass of the paper was measured and the result was 4 grams. The observer then wrote the mass on the effort line. After that, a dime was centered on the resistance line. The fulcrum was located by sliding the paper strip until it began to teeter on the edge, it was then marked Fulcrum #1. Then, the lengths of the resistance and effort arms were measured to the nearest 0.1 cm. Next, the IMA of the lever was calculated and the observer multiplied the mass of the lever to find the approximate mass of the coin. The process repeated to find Fulcrum #2 and Fulcrum #3.

Observations and Results: In this experiment, the effective total length of the lever was a constant and the lengths of the resistance and effort arms were variables. The effort force was provided by gravity. If the IMA is less than 1.0 the effort arm is longer than the resistant.

WEIGHT EFFORT DISTANCE RESISTANCE DISTANCE IMA

Dime 3.16 5.3

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