I have been doing that exact same "experiment" for years - didn't realize it was in Workshop Physics. I use bowling balls without the finger holes drilled into them - get a nice constant speed roll down the corridor.
I also do a similar setup for acceleration. I have a student hit the ball with a foam wiffle-ball bat at a steady rate and force. When graphed - the students find a steadily increasing speed. Occasionally, the acceleration turns out not to be constant because the batter did not maintain constant force as he/she chased the ball.
Bob at PC
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From: Phys-l [phys-l-bounces@phys-l.org] on behalf of Trivilino, Herman [HTrivilino@com.edu]
Sent: Thursday, September 19, 2013 8:24 PM
To: Phys-L@Phys-L.org
Subject: Re: [Phys-L] motion lab
Workshop Physics has a good activity where students stand along a hallway, for example, separated from each by fixed distances. Each student has a stop watch in hand. A ball is then rolled down the hallway and each student measures the clock reading as the ball passes. The position and time of the ball is then available and can entered into a spreadsheet or just a table, and then the data can be graphed and used to illuminate the relationship between position, time, and velocity.
Each position-time coordinate refers to an event, and each student "owns" an event. The idea can then be developed that events last for time time but occur at a time.
Good stuff, low teach, and a worthwhile lesson.
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From: Phys-l on behalf of Anthony Lapinski
Sent: Thu 19-Sep-13 3:11 PM
To: phys-l@phys-l.org
Subject: [Phys-L] motion lab
Does anyone do a "constant velocity" lab? Like using constant velocity
cars (Tumble Buggies)? If so, what do students measure (just d and t?)? Do
they make a graph? Cookbook or open-ended? Is it more about measuring than
finding the actual speed?
I'm looking for something low tech (for high school) and meaningful. Just
stopwatches and meter sticks. Wanting some ideas to make a "basic" lab
like this interesting...