Back in the Saddle

After the extended weekend (with a teacher professional development day tossed in for good measure), folks were raring to pick up where they left off on Friday...

Physics A and B reviewed their work with horizontally-launched projectiles before launching into projectiles launched at an angle. We'll concentrate on projectiles for which the launch and landing heights are equal to facilitate problem solving. Remember to break your initial launch velocity into x- and y-components and use these components in your kinematics formulas. Keep in mind that the velocity in the x-direction is constant, the acceleration in the y-direction is -9.81 m/s², the velocity in the y-direction at the maximum height is 0 m/s and that the trajectory of the projectile will be a symmetrical parabola. You should be able to solve for horizontal range (Δx), maximum height (Δy_max) and total time in the air. We worked a sample problem in class today and there are a couple of videos posted a few days ago that you can watch to see other examples. We'll go over the homework tomorrow and if more practice is needed, we have time to do just that. Review time on Friday and exam on Monday - be prepared!

Introductory Physics engaged in a lab investigation that had people exploring the concept of friction. The impact of surface texture, surface area and mass on friction was evaluated and data was collected to let folks calculate the coefficient of kinetic friction (μ_k). That concept isn't discussed in your books, so we'll take time in class tomorrow to provide some background information on this and other concepts associated with the lab. The write up isn't due until Friday, so you'll have time to incorporate these ideas into your work.

Honors Physics built on their work with force and F_net to discuss Newton's 1^st and 2^nd laws of motion. Add the new vocabulary of inertia, equilibrium and equilibriant to your terminology suitcase. Also, make sure you are very clear, conceptually, on what those first two laws of motion have to say in terms of the impact of force on motion. Be able to, also, solve problems using Newton's 2^nd law of motion. You may have to do some work to calculate the net force first, but it is just familiar old vector work, so don't be nervous about jumping right in. We'll go over the homework items tomorrow before taking a look at Newton's 3^rdlaw of motion.