Physics Application

Intro We have talked about Newton’s first two laws of motion. Using this knowledge, we are going to conduct an experiment to utilize what we’ve learned to prevent an egg from breaking when dropped.

Background As we know, it doesn’t require a lot of force to break an egg shell. We know that force = mass X acceleration. The average mass of a large egg is approximately 57g or 0.057kg. The acceleration due to gravity is 9.8m/s2 What is the force generated by dropping an egg for 1 second?

Here’s the Math using Newton’s 2nd Law F= ? M= .057kg A= 9.8m/s2 Force= (.057kg)(9.8m/s2) Force = 0.56N

Using What We Know An object in motion will remain in motion unless acted on by an unbalanced force. As we drop an egg, what will be the unbalanced force acting on the moving egg?

Our Task Design an apparatus that prevents an egg from breaking when dropped from the second story.

Materials 7 sheets of computer paper Scotch tape 1 large egg 1 sandwich bag to put the egg in (to contain the egg if the apparatus should fail)

Hints In order to have your egg survive, you should slow down the egg’s fall and/or increase the moment of impact (much like crumple zones in a car. Good luck and have fun. 25 bonus points per group whose egg survives the fall. 10 extra points for each sheet of paper not used, provided that your egg survives.