Motion Detector Lab.

On friday we learned and experimented with motion detectors. Jackie, Gemma and I all measured motions together. Something interesting I learned that if you keep a constant, smooth speed, you can have zero accelartation and positive velocity. One struggle our group had was to keep the line smooth, it always would get bumpy or jagged! I learned that accelaration is speeding up and slowing down. I was interested when I found out that if you move toward the motion detectors, the distance is negative, and gave a negative slope. When you walk away from the motion detector, the distance is positive, and gives a positive slope.

One thing that confused me is;
Why does the line stay staight if your not moving at all? Why doesn't it just stop?

Soccer on the Moon

If you played soccer on the moon, obviously some changes would occur. Since the gravity is a lower force than on the earth, (1.6m/s2 on the moon) the soccer ball would move slower, and more force is needed to kick it. Therefor, it would be going slower on the moon. It might go farther because there is no air friction. If you kicked a soccer ball off the ground it would stay off the ground for longer than on earth due to the lower force of gravity. Since there is less gravity, it will move slower. The weight of the soccer ball will weigh less on the moon but have the same mass on all planets.