PhysicsRamp madnessDavid MartinezCydeni Carter
Science Fair Project
Statement of the Problem
How does plastic, cardboard, and metal affect the speed of the car?
Project Overview
We are going to test how metal, plastic, and cardboard ramps will affect the speed of a toy car. Then we will see what affects it the most and why.
Variables
Independent variable: surface Dependent variable: speed of car
measured in seconds per foot Constant variables: speed of car,
weight of car, length of surface, size of wheels, distance from start to finish, angle of ramp, width, and height
Control group: plastic
Hypothesis
If the car is on a metal ramp then it will travel faster then it proves that the surface is faster because it is smoother than the others.
Materials
One toy car 3 ramps made out of metal,
plastic, and cardboard that are 2.5 inches and I meter long
Stopwatch Camera with video goggles
Procedure
1. Gather all materials needed and safety precautions
2. Put goggles on3. Cut plastic, metal, and plastic so that its
2.5 inches wide and 1 meter long4. Set up the ramps at an angle of 30
degrees5. Record time it took for each to get to the
finish line6. Make chart showing time of cars
PhotosThe Toy Car
The Card Board Ramp
David Making the plastic ramp
Toy Car
Cydeni Doing the Card Board
Test
Data/ObservationsAnalyzes
metal plastic cardboard1.1
1.15
1.2
1.25
1.3
1.35
1.4
Ramp Madness
Surface
Tim
e (
in s
econds)
Conclusion
We discovered a lot after this experiment. We discovered that metal helped a car go faster but the cardboard made it go slower.
Possible Experimental Errors
We think that maybe the floor slowed it down because it crashed with the floor when it got off the ramp.
Applications and Recommendations
The car ramps had different textures witch impacted the speed. Next time we might choose better materials to choose from.