Paper Airplane Lab Write UpMUST BE TYPED(due Friday)



Paper Airplane Lab Write Up FINAL DRAFT MUST BE TYPED

Names ________________/______________/_______________ Hour ___    ____/110

Mr. Weiand’s Science Class           

Paper Airplane Lab

American aviation pioneers Orville and Wilbur Wright invented the first successful self-propelled airplane. In the 1880s and 1890s the two brothers published a newspaper and later formed the Wright Cycle Company to build and sell bicycles in Dayton, Ohio.

            The brothers’ interest in aviation started in 1896, when they learned of early European experiments in sustained flight. They began a program for building an airplane by first conducting tests with kites and then gliders. Before attempting powered flight, they solved the essential problems of controlling the plane’s motion in rising, descending, and turning. An isolated beach near Kitty Hawk, NC, was selected for flight tests based on the advice of the U.S. Weather Bureau. After making more than 700 successful glider flights at Kitty Hawk in 1902, the Wright brothers faced the problem of finding an engine light enough and powerful enough to get their plane off the ground. No automobile manufacturer would accept the assignment, so the Wright brothers, along with Charles Taylor, designed and built their own 12-to-16 horsepower engine and propeller for their plane, which was originally named “Flyer I,” but commonly referred to as the ‘Kitty-Hawk.’ On December 17, 1903, Orville achieved the first successful flight ever made in a self-propelled heavier-than-air craft.

            In order for their plane to get off the ground the Wright brothers needed to do many experiments using what we know as the scientific method. The scientific method is the way that scientists gather information and test ideas. In this lab you will examine the scientific method and run some of your own tests using something you probably know a great deal about, paper airplanes. You will create your own paper airplanes, measure them for distance traveled, just as Orville and Wilbur must have done when they started in the field of aviation using the scientific method.

Paper Airplane Lab Write Up FINAL DRAFT MUST BE TYPED

Name _____________________ Group # _____ Hour ___ ____/110

Mr. Weiand’s Science Class OBJECTIVE

♣         ♣         Demonstrate the principles of the scientific method using paper airplanes.

♣         ♣         Measure the distance traveled of airplanes made of different materials (computer paper and construction paper). 

 

MATERIALS

▪ ♣         Several sheets of plain paper and construction paper

▪ ♣         Ruler or meter stick

▪ Calculator

▪ Access to a computer to type up lab

PROCEDURE

Part I.  Question:

 

Which will fly farther, a paper airplane made out of construction paper, or a paper airplane made out of computer paper?

 

Part II. Collect Information:

 

See what you know about paper airplanes based on your past experiences to determine what type of paper will help make a paper airplane fly the furthest.

 

Part III.  Hypothesis: _____/ 20

 

Based on your information and prior knowledge, you must next form a hypothesis. Remember a hypothesis is a possible answer to a question, a solution to the problem, or even an educated guess. What is the question or problem you are trying to solve? The question your hypothesis must answer is “Which will fly farther, a paper airplane made out of construction paper, or a paper airplane made out of computer paper?”

Make your hypothesis detailed and list it below.

Hypothesis:  ________/20

My hypothesis is that ……

I believe this because…….. 

Part IV. Experiment / Test your Hypothesis

 

TEST #1 (COMPUTER PAPER)

An experiment is a controlled procedure designed to test a hypothesis.

This is your control group.

A. Construct an airplane out of computer paper. This will be the first test plane or the control.

B. In the hallway area throw the plane measure the distance, in the direction of intended flight, in meters from where you threw the plane to where it landed. Record your measurements in the data table.

C. Repeat letter B nine more times so that you have ten recordings. Take the average and record them in the data table.

D. Make observations about the flight. (for example: did it turn up, go down, turn right or left, glide well, take a nose dive, etc.?).

E. Record your data in the data table.

F.  Discuss with your lab partner the reasons that your plane did what it did. List the possible reasons below: 

__________________________________________________________________________________

 

 TEST #2 (CONSTRUCTION PAPER) 

 

An experiment is a controlled procedure designed to test a hypothesis.

This is your variable group.

A.      Design a new plane out of construction paper. To test your hypothesis you must change only one aspect of your plane at a time. Construct your new plane exactly the same as the computer paper plane.

B. In the hallway area throw the plane measure the distance, in the direction of intended flight, in meters from where you threw the plane to where it landed. Record your measurements in the data table.

C. Repeat letter B nine more times so that you have ten recordings. Take the average and record them in the data table.

D. Make observations about the flight. (for example: did it turn up, go down, turn right or left, glide well, take a nose dive, etc.?).

E. Record your data in the data table.

F.  Discuss with your lab partner the reasons that your plane did what it did. List the possible reasons below: 

______________________________________________________________________________________

 

Part V. Data _____/20 (10 points for each set) BAR GRAPH

Group tests to see whose plane will be used for the main experiment. Label DATA!

|Trial |Name |Name |Name |Name |

|1 | | | | |

|2 | | | | |

|3 | | | | |

|4 | | | | |

|5 | | | | |

|Average | | | | |

Whose plane will you be using for Friday’s tests? _____________________________

 Test Part II. Computer paper vs. Construction paper. Line graph

 

|Trial |Computer paper (M) |Construction paper (M) |

|1 |  |  |

|2 |  |  |

|3 |  |  |

|4 |  |  |

|5 | |  |

|6 |  |  |

|7 |  |  |

|8 |  |  |

|9 |  |  |

|10 |  |  |

|Average |  |  |

Notes on Computer Paper Trials:

·______________________________________________________________________

·_______________________________________________________________________

Notes on Construction Paper Trials:

·______________________________________________________________________

·_______________________________________________________________________

Part VI.  Graph _____/30

You will make two graphs (15 points each).

Graph #1 will have your group data that is accumulated in your first trials (when you decide which plane to use), comparing the distances that the planes that your four members made went.

Graph #2 will compare your group trials (with your best plane) for computer paper vs. construction paper.

Be sure to label X and Y axis, the title and include a key.

Make it on Create a graph.

 

 

Part VII. Conclusion  ____/40

A. Was your hypothesis correct? ______________________________________

 

State your conclusion here.  Be sure to be very detailed (IT's WORTH 40 POINTS!), referring to DATA that you recorded in this experiment.  Use your scientific method notes to help you if you have trouble writing this out.

In conclusion, my hypothesis was ___________________. The data showed _______.

This means __________________

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