PHYS 1211: Introductory Physics I Lab

Discover how energy conservation principles determine the velocity of a bouncing ball. Relate the ball's height and its potential and kinetic energies. Understand the velocity change upon impact and rebound.

Explore how a mass spectrometer works by analyzing an ion's path through the device. Understand the relationship between electric and magnetic fields in determining the ion's trajectory. Learn to compute the radius of an ion's path within the mass spectrometer.

Learn how to calculate the kinetic energy of a Saturn 5 rocket with an Apollo spacecraft attached using physics principles and formulas. Understand the importance of unit conversion and the work-energy theorem as you plug values into the KE = 1/2 mv² formula. Discover that the kinetic energy for this rocket and spacecraft combo is an astonishing 1.82 x 10¹³ Joules.

Explore the intriguing physics of a sandal dropped from a moving ship and learn how to calculate its velocity relative to the ship and a stationary observer on shore.

Explore the relative strengths of two fundamental forces, the electromagnetic force and the gravitational force, in this enlightening physics tutorial. Learn about Coulomb's law and Newton's law of gravitation, and uncover the significant difference in their constants that makes the electromagnetic force much more powerful than gravity.

Delve into Newton's third law of motion and explore how the choice of the 'system of interest' influences whether force pairs cancel each other out.