Virtual Snowmobile Lab
Problem: 1) Calculate the speed of five snowmobile and to predict the order that each snowmobile will finish.
Go to: http://sunshine.chpc.utah.edu/Labs/ForceAndMotion/act1/lab.htm
Procedure: In this lab, you will calculate the average speed for five snowmobiles. The time it takes each snowmobile to
travel a certain distance is listed below each of the five snowmobiles’ names (scroll through the pictures to get the distance
and times for each snowmobile). Transfer this information for each snowmobile to the chart in your lab packet and calculate
their speed. (Use a calculator.)
What is the formula for calculating speed : _____________________________________
Based on your calculations, you will predict the order in which the snowmobiles will finish the race. Record the calculated
speeds and your predictions in your lab. They will be lost when you leave the webpage. If you run the program again, you
will need to recalculate the speeds of the snowmobiles because each time you run the program the results will be
different. So do not forget to write your data down! Click the Race After Calculating Each Snowmobile Speed Button. After
running the race, record the order in which the contestants finished, and see if your predictions were accurate.
Data:
Snowmobile
Mangler
Distance
traveled
(kilometers)
Time traveled
(hours)
Speed (km/h)
*Round to nearest tenth
Predicted
race outcome
st
nd
rd
(1 , 2 , 3 ,
th
th
4 ,5 )
Actual race
outcome
st
nd
rd
th
(1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ,
th
5 )
Otter Pop
Slider
Snowflake
White Fang
Questions
1.
Now that you've "raced" the snowmobiles, was your prediction about how they would finish correct or incorrect?
2.
Understanding average speed can help make predictions and lead to other calculations. For example, two
snowmobiles, Otter Pop and White Fang, travel at different average speeds from one place to another. If Otter Pop
gets to the destination first, what can you say about its average speed? (If you need to draw a sketch to clarify
your ideas, go ahead!)
3.
Now Slider and Mangler are traveling at the same average speed, but they are going to different places. Mangler
takes longer to get to its destination. What can you say about Mangler's trip compared to Slider's? (Feel free to
make a sketch if it will help you.)
4.
Most people are familiar with speeds in a narrow range of human experience. A good runner can run about 7 miles
per hour. A sprinter may reach about 20 miles per hour. A fast car can go about 200 miles per hour on a racetrack
only! :) An airplane averages about 450 miles per hour. Very slow things and very fast things are harder to measure
and understand. What are the slowest and the fastest things you can think of? (Name at least 2 for each.)
5.
One question puzzled scientists for many years. That question was, "How fast does light travel?" In 1638, Galileo, a
famous scientist, decided he wanted to try and find out. What two things are needed to find the speed of an
object? Are they the same things you would need to find the speed of light?
6.
Galileo used a lantern to generate a light and had an assistant located a mile from him. At an exact predetermined
time, Galileo uncovered the lantern. The assistant noted the time, and a calculation was made. The next night, they
repeated the experiment, only this time, they used a longer distance. But, even though the distance had changed,
the time remained the same. Their method didn't work. Why do you think their method for finding the speed of
light didn't work? How would you be able to fix their experiment by using some of today's technology?
7.
We now know the speed of light to be about 186,000 miles per second. Miles per second! You can figure out light's
average miles per hour by multiplying 186,000 miles by 60 seconds to get miles per minute (60 seconds in a minute),
and then multiplying your new number by 60 minutes to get miles per hour (60 minutes in an hour). How far does
light travel in an hour?
8.
This astonishing value for the speed of light is recognized by scientists to be the maximum speed that an object can
travel. It is nature's speed limit!
The speed equation (speed = distance/time) can be used to predict how long a trip will take. If the speed and
distance are known, the equation can be used to solve for time instead of speed. You and your family are going to
travel to a great amusement park that is 650 miles away. You'll be taking your family car, but your parents drive very
slowly, only 50 miles per hour. So, put your speed (50 miles per 1 hour) where the speed part of the equation is, and
your distance (650 miles) where the distance part of the equation is. Since you don't know the time yet, put a t
650 miles
where time will go. Your equation should look like this: 50 miles =
1 hour
t
How long will it take you to get to the amusement park?