Transcript

HELEN:

So in this experiment, we're going to measure little g, or the acceleration due to gravity, and you're going to recreate, if you like, your own little drop tower at home.

So we've done this by imagining our wall is this piece of cardboard, and we've got a tape measure. Now, ours is a haberdasher's tape measure, but a DIY one works just as well. And at 50 centimetres, we've marked very carefully with a ruler a simple line. This is going to be our drop point for our experiment.

We've tacked everything on with blue tack, and we've got all ready a handy smartphone with a stopwatch. And what are we going to drop? Well, we're going to drop some toy balls. So, let's have a go at looking at all these different balls, and as we do drop these balls, I want you to think about their size, their mass, and what's going to happen to them.

From what you've learnt so far, are some of them going to drop faster or slower? And afterwards, what you'll be able to do is watch the slow motion of each ball dropping, and then in the text, we're going to explain to you how to do the calculations and get your own value of little g.

Tom, are we ready to drop the balls?

TOM:

Here we go.

HELEN:

OK, let me get the stopwatch ready. So, first ball. Ready, steady, go. OK. Next ball, then. Ready, steady, go!

OK, so now you've seen us drop our balls, and we've obviously got slow motion and the advantage of finding the exact time they've taken to drop. We want you to go and find your selection of toys, and drop them and time them, and use your information with the same method as ours, following the information in the text to try and calculate your own value of little g. Let's compare the two answers.