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Movement
Resources, Classroom Activities, Assessment Ideas, IT Applications
Resources
Text Resources
- Daish, C B 1972, The Physics of Ball Games, English Universities Press
- Griffing, DF 1987, The Dynamics of Sport, Dalog.
- Hay, JC 1985, The Biomechanics of Sports Techniques, Prentice Hall, New Jersey.
- Schrier, EW & Allman, WF (eds) 1987, Newton at the Bat: The Science in Sports, Macmillan, New York.
Conceptual Understanding Procedures (CUPs)
CUPs is a set of teaching procedures for physics developed by Monash University. They are designed to aid the development of understanding of concepts that students find difficult. There are 12 activities, 10 on Forces, Energy and Motion, and 2 on Electricity.
The Geometry of War 1500 - 1750
This exhibition at Oxford University's Museum of the History of Science shows how mathematical science was used in warfare and illustrates the historical and philosophical contexts in which kinematics developed.
Audiovisual Resources
It is recommended that teachers should view any video before purchase.
- Marcom Projects: Energy Work and Power, Newton's Laws of Motion, What is Kinematics
- ABC: Pathways to Australian Science - Ep 1: Gravity, Orbits and Asteroids
Videos
Type | Filename | Filesize | |
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8.01 MB | ||
Students throw a raw egg at a fitted sheet hung from the ceiling. Motion, air bag, impulse. 23 sec avi file. | |||
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34.1 MB | ||
An ASPEN video showing a stoppered and tilted test tube of ether on an air tack glider. The ether is warmed by a small burner. The pressure increases, then pushes the stopper from the tube, the glider goes backwards. Motion, Newton's 3rd Law, rockets. 1:50 min mpeg file. ASPEN is the Asian Physics Education Network, a group which operates under the auspices of UNESCO to promote and communicate developments in university physics education in the Asian region. | |||
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51.3 kB | ||
The cheeks are pushed back. Motion, acceleration. 2 sec Quicktime file. | |||
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742 kB | ||
Inside an orbiting space craft a boomerang is thrown and returns. Motion, flight, lift. 19 sec mp4 file. | |||
Relevant papers from recent Physics Teachers Conferences
Type | Filename | Filesize | |
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Using 'Conceptual Understanding Procedures' (CUPs) in the teaching of Motion |
52.1 kB | |
Material from the workshop by Pam Mulhall, University of Melbourne at the 2011 Physics Teachers Conference. | |||
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2.62 MB | ||
Th pdf file from a presentation by Kelvin Barraclough from Gisborne Secondary College at the 2008 Physics Teachers Conference. | |||
Classroom Activities
Acceleration Due to Gravity
Vision of the Hammer and Feather Experiment performed by Dave Scott, Joe Allen and Jim Irwin on Apollo moon mission.
Scienceworks
A great location for an excursion is to Scienceworks, Museum of Victoria, Spotswood. Permanent displays: 'Sportsworks' and 'The Lightning Room' as well as Planetarium presentations.
Assessment Ideas
Type | Filename | Filesize | |
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22.8 kB | ||
Force, Impulse and Momentum Unit Test. | |||
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75.3 kB | ||
A test on straight line motion. | |||
IT Applications
Useful Websites
Physics of Kung Fu
A multimedia website designed to engage young people. The website follows a young physicist as she learns how to break through three planks of wood. She keeps a lab book of her thoughts and experiments. The website also includes videos of the techniques, discusses the physics principles involved and shows her calculating the energy required and working out whether she can break the wood, given her size and the speed of her arm.
Traffic Light system
A sophisticated applet simulating traffic through a series of controlled intersections. You can set the period of each colour of the traffic lights, the delay time between the lights at adjacent intersections as well as the maximum speed and acceleration of the cars.
Applet showing generation of kinematic graphs
The Moving Man: Using a mouse, the student drags a stick figure back and forth across the top of the screen between its home and its school. Below, graphs of the motion appear as the motion progresses. Detailed instructions.
The comparison of Aristotle and Galileo
A short text-based explanation.
Galileo's Battle for the heavens
A US Public Broadcasting System (PBS) website on Galileo. It features articles as well as interactives on 'falling objects;, 'projectiles', inclined planes' and 'pendulums'. Excellent ball dropped from moving horse sequence(late in program: 1h35m)
Interactive Applets
Interactive Applets for Video: Galileo-Battle for the heavens.
Speed records
A file of speed records compiled by the International Human Powered Vehicle Association (IHPVA) covering all manner of configurations on land, on and under water and in air.
Road Safety links
An extensive list of links on Road safety both for Australia and from around the world prepared by Vehicle Design and Research Pty Ltd.
Road safety: Controlling speed
Another extensive list of links on road safety prepared by the Vehicle Design and Research Pty Ltd.
Safety of four wheel drive vehicles and bull bars
Comprehensive report on safety aspects prepared by Vehicle Design and Research Pty Ltd.
Physics of Rollover Crashes
Extensive description and analysis, includes animation.
Severe and Fatal Car Crashes due to road side hazards
A study by the University of Adelaide, it contains: A literature review, An examination of general crash data, A detailed examination of fatal car crashes and At scene investigation of road crashes .
Car safety website by PBS
The Public Broadcasting System (PBS) (US) website is an accessible, but comprehensive description of passive safety strategies. It includes a Teacher guide.
Applets
Motion with Constant Acceleration
This Java applet shows a car moving with constant acceleration. The green control panel contains text fields where you can vary the values of initial position, initital velocity and acceleration. By using the buttons at the top right you can bring back the car to its initial position or stop and resume the simulation. If you choose the option "Slow motion", the movement will be ten times slower. Three digital clocks indicate the time elapsed since the start. As soon as the car has reached the green respectively red light barrier with its front bumper, the corresponding clock will stop. Both light barriers are adjustable by dragging the mouse with pressed mouse button. Three diagrams illustrate the motion of the vehicle, x, v and a vs t.
Equilibrium of three forces
An applet by Walter Fendt. A point has three masses attached by cords. One hangs vertically, the other two hang over pulleys. The weight force in Newtons on each can be adjusted. The diagram adjusts automatically to reflect the new situation, and the angles between the forces are also given.
Resultant of Forces (addition of vectors)
The applet by Walter Fendt shows the process of adding the forces, one by one, and displays the resultant vector. You can select from 2 to 5 forces and each of the forces can be altered in size and direction.
Inclined Plane
An applet by Walter Fendt. A mass is pulled up an inclined plane. The angle of the plane, the mass of the object and the value of the coefficient of friction can be adjusted. The parallel and normal components of the weight force, the size of the friction force and the required force to make the object move are shown. After you select “Start” the mass moves up the plane with all the force vectors displayed.
Newton's 2nd law of motion
The applet by Walter Fendt simulates an air track set up. A glider is pulled along by a mass hanging over the end. The masses of the glider and the hanging mass can be adjusted. The coefficient of friction can also be varied. After you select “Start” the combined mass system begins to move. At the same time a point moves along a Disp – Time graph. A Light beam can be placed anywhere along the glider path. When the glider cuts the beam, the time and displacement are measured. A permanent dot is placed on the graph, and the data can be saved, and added to earlier measurements with the light beam in different positions. The effect of the size of the falling mass on the acceleration can also be investigated, as well as the effect of friction.
Simple Pendulum
An Applet by Walter Fendt. The display features an oscillating pendulum, but you can choose to show either of the following graphs against time: displacement, velocity, tangential acceleration, net tangential force and energies, GPE and KE. The graphs have a dot moving along them in time with the oscillation. In addition as the pendulum oscillates there is a vector representing the selected quantity on the mass. The force diagram shows the weight, tension and net tangential force. You are able to vary the length, mass and amplitude. There is also a slow motion option. Note: the applet does not use the phrase “tangential force”, just “Force”, whose value goes to zero at the mid point, with the weight force and tension being equal and opposite. The applet would be useful in Year 11 in illustrating the relationships between vel, accel’n and net force, and GPE and KE.