AP Physics Lab Manual
Lab 3: Newton’s 2nd Law
Lab 3: Newton’s 2nd Law
Newton’s second law tell us that the acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the force
applied to it and inversely proportional to the mass of the object – in other words, the harder you
push, the faster it will accelerate, and the heavier it is, the slower it will accelerate. This
relationship is expressed in the equation:
F = ma
Acceleration is defined as the change of velocity per unit time, and is the slope of the velocity vs.
time graph.
In this lab you will learn:
How to use free-body diagrams to determine and visualize experimental variables for
force and motion [LO1]
How to graph velocity versus time [LO2]
How to measure and calculate velocity [LO3]
How to calculate acceleration [LO4]
Activity 1: Pre-Assessment [LO1][LO2][EK3.A.1][EK3.A.2]
[FIGURE 03_01_cartsetup]
[Caption]The cart of mass m1 accelerates along the table. Rate of acceleration is directly proportional to
mass m2.
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AP Physics Lab Manual
Lab 3: Newton’s 2nd Law
1. In your notebook: Draw a free-body diagram indicating all of the forces in action.
2. In your notebook: Answer the following questions:
a. What do you know about the force on mass m2?
b. What is the relationship between the acceleration of mass m1 and the acceleration
of mass m2?
c. In the system, what function does the pulley serve?
d. How would the problem be different if the mass m2 was resting directly on the
table instead of a cart with wheels?
3. In your notebook: Using the notation from your free-body diagram, derive the equation
to calculate the acceleration of mass m2. For the purposes of this exercise, ignore friction
and air resistance and assume that the pulley and string are massless.
4. In your notebook: Draw a sample graph of what you would expect the velocity of the
cart to look like as a function of time. In an experimental setting, what information can
you glean from the velocity versus time data?
5. Discuss the answers to the above questions with the class.
Activity 1: Applying Constant Force
[LO2][LO3][LO4][EK3.A.1][EK3.A.2][EK1.C.1][EK1.C.2]
When a constant force is applied to an object or system, the object or system will
accelerate at a constant rate. If the applied force and mass of the system are known, the
acceleration can be calculated and compared to experimental results.
Safety Precautions:
Heavy weights falling can cause injury. Keeping overall system weight is ideal. If
choosing to experiment with heavier weights, ensure the area is clear before engaging.
For this activity you will need:
Cart, weights, pulley and string setup [if no pulleys are available, dental floss over the
edge of the table will work]
Meter stick
Stopwatch or video capture device
For this activity you will work in pairs or small groups.
Structured Inquiry:
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AP Physics Lab Manual
Lab 3: Newton’s 2nd Law
Step 1: Hypothesize/Predict: The experimental setup in Figure 03_01_cartsetup shows mass m1
resting on the cart and mass m2 hanging from the string. Can you predict what will happen when
you change mass m2 while keeping m1 constant? Choose a value for m1. Choose several values
for m2 to test. Using the equation you derived in the pre-assessment, calculate your prediction
for the acceleration of the cart for each value of m1. Record these calculations in your notebook.
Step 2: Student-led planning: With your system setup, how can you measure and illustrate the
velocity of the cart as a function of time? Using the values for m2 you selected in Step 1, create a
data table to structure your inquiry.
Step 3: Procedure: Execute the planned experiment, repeating the procedure for each of the
selected values of m2. Record the numerical results in the prepared data table(s) and graph the
velocity vs. time graph for each value of m2 in your notebook. Calculate the acceleration of the
cart for each value of m2.
Step 4: Critical Analysis: Compare the experimental results from step 4 to your calculated
predictions from Step 2. Were the results from your experiment the same as your calculated
predictions? Why or why not?
Guided Inquiry:
Step 1: Hypothesize/Predict: If your experimental results weren’t the same as you predicted,
what factors do you think affected the results? Consider some of the assumptions that were made
about the setup when you did your initial calculations in step 1. How much do you think those
factors affected the results? How could you alter the experiment to test this? Write your ideas in
your notebook.
Step 2: Student-led planning: Discuss and decide as a team which modifications to the
experiment to implement in order to test your theories. Check with your teacher before
conducting additional experiments.
Step 3: Critical Analysis: Were you able to determine how much impact the setup assumptions
have on your experimental results? Could you used this data to improve your predictions for the
acceleration of the cart with different values of m2? How?
Assessments
1. What is velocity? [EK4.A.2]
2. What is acceleration? [EK4.A.2]
3. What is the source of the force causing the acceleration of the system? [EK1.C.2]
4. In what direction is the force being applied to the cart? [EK3.A.2]
5. How did you change the acceleration of the cart?[EK1.C.1]
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AP Physics Lab Manual
Lab 3: Newton’s 2nd Law
6. When you increased the hanging mass, did that increase or decrease the acceleration of
the cart? Why?[EK3.A.3]
7. What measurements did you make that enabled you to calculate acceleration? [EK3.A.1]
8. The setup diagram in Figure 03_01_cartsetup shows a pulley and implies that gravity is
the source of the force applied to m2. Draw a simplified, equivalent free-body diagram
that eliminates the pulley and does not specify the source of the force. [LO1][EK3.A.2]
[Solutions]
1. A vector quantity indicating the rate of change of displacement per unit of time
2. A vector quantity indicating the rate of change of velocity per unit of time
3. The force of gravity on the hanging mass
4. Horizontal
5. Changing the hanging mass changes the total force due to gravity, which in turn changes
the force transmitted to the cart via the string, which changes the acceleration of the
system.
6. Increasing the hanging mass increased the acceleration of the cart because it increased the
force applied.
7. Measuring the position of the cart at subsequent time intervals allowed calculation of
instantaneous velocity over a series of points. The change in velocity from start to finish
is the acceleration.
Activity 2: Effect of Force on Different Masses
[LO2][LO3][LO4][EK3.A.1][EK3.A.2][EK1.C.1][EK1.C.2]
Newton’s 2nd Law tells us that the acceleration of an object or system is inversely proportional to
the mass of the object or system. The bigger the mass of the system, the lower the acceleration.
Safety Precautions:
Heavy weights falling can cause injury. Keeping overall system weight is ideal. If
choosing to experiment with heavier weights, ensure the area is clear before engaging.
For this activity you will need:
Cart, weights, pulley and string setup [if no pulleys are available, dental floss over the
edge of the table will work]
Meter stick
Stopwatch or video capture device
For this activity you will work in pairs or small groups.
Structured Inquiry:
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AP Physics Lab Manual
Lab 3: Newton’s 2nd Law
Step 1: Hypothesize/Predict: The experimental setup in Figure 03_01_cartsetup shows mass m1
resting on the cart and mass m2 hanging from the string. Can you predict what will happen when
you change mass m1 while keeping m2 constant? Choose a value for m2. Choose several values
for m1 to test. Using the equation you derived in the pre-assessment, calculate your prediction
for the acceleration of the cart for each value of m2. Record your calculations in your notebook.
Step 2: Student-led planning: In Part 1 of this lab, you established a procedure for finding the
velocity of the cart. Using the values for m1 you selected in Step 1, create a data table to
structure your inquiry.
Step 3: Procedure: Execute the planned experiment, repeating the procedure for each of the
selected values of m1. Record the numerical results in the prepared data table(s) and graph the
velocity vs. time graph for each value of m2 in your notebook. Calculate the acceleration of the
cart for each value of m1.
Step 4: Critical Analysis: Compare the experimental results from step 4 to your calculated
predictions from Step 2. Were the results from your experiment the same as your calculated
predictions? Why or why not?
Guided Inquiry:
Step 1: Hypothesize/Predict: Taking information from both part 1 and part 2 of this lab, what
do you think would happen if the TOTAL mass of the system stayed constant, but the force was
changed?
Step 2: Student-led planning: How can you keep the TOTAL mass of the system constant but
change the force applied? Discuss and decide with your lab partner or group which modifications
to the experiment to implement in order to test your theories. Get approval from your teacher
before proceeding.
Step 3: Critical Analysis: Did your results match your hypothesis? Why or why not?
Assessments
1. When you increased the mass on the cart, did that increase or decrease the acceleration
of the cart? Why? [EK3.A.3]
[Solutions]
1. Changing the mass on the cart changed the rate of acceleration in an inversely
proportional relationship. Increased mass decreased the acceleration, decreased mass
increased the acceleration.
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