Understanding Free Fall & Gravity Using an Incline Plane

“All objects move towards their natural place”

 Objects fall down because the center of the Earth is their natural place.  The speed of an object in free fall is proportional to its mass.  Objects fall faster through mediums that are less dense.

 He had no equipment to conduct any research or experiments.  He had no way of knowing about air resistance.  He was not aware of the effects of friction.  He was a philosopher not a scientist.

Galileo Galilei ( ) “I do not feel obliged to believe that the same god who has endowed us with sense, reason and intellect has intended us to forgo their use.”

 All objects fall with the same rate of acceleration  Mass does not effect the rate of acceleration  An objects velocity will increase the farther it falls

 Goal = determine the value of “g”  Many people feel he conducted experiments by dropping objects off the “Tower of Pisa”.  Too difficult to get accurate results with equipment available  Used an incline plane to study free fall (objects move slower, easier to control)

Galileo Video

 Derived equation: Δd = v i t + ½at 2  Found that objects speed up at a faster rate when the angle of incline increases  Diameter effects rate of acceleration (bigger diameter=less friction, velocity increases)  All objects fall with the same rate of acceleration  For falling objects:  V ∝ T  D ∝ T 2  Concluded: All objects fall with the same rate of acceleration regardless of mass when you neglect air resistance.

Resulting Graph of Distance vs. Time

Resulting Graph of Distance vs. Time 2

Resulting Graph of Velocity vs. Time (mid)