Project Description
This is meant to be an enjoyable learning experience in which you are given the freedom to
apply the physics that you have learned thus far to something else.
It could be research based or experiment based. It could be as simple as a more thorough
exploration of one of the experiments that you have previously done in another course. You
could also take this as an opportunity to build something. You could study the physics involved
in something that interests you (i.e. –the physics of riding a bicycle, the physics of golf, or why is
the sky blue and why are sunsets reddish). You can work in small groups if you prefer or you can
work individually.
You can either present your findings in a 5 minute video recorded talk or you may present your
findings in a 5-10 page paper. The aim should be to convey what physics is central to whatever
your project is.
A small subset of past projects:
• The physics of baseball
• The physics of dance
• The physics of skateboarding
• The physics of black holes
• A constructed model Sterling Engine (made from soda cans!)
• Mousetrap cars
• Simple circuits
• Reuben’s Tube (this has potential safety hazards—a discussion of safety is required for
anything potentially dangerous)
• Trebuchet (this has potential safety hazards—a discussion of safety is required for
anything potentially dangerous)