The very nature of science is discoveries, and the best of those discoveries are the ones you don't expect. - Neil deGrasse Tyson
About this assignment
You will have the opportunity to discuss this assignment with your peers. However, each students will submit an individual paper for marking.
Learning Objectives
- Discuss scientific method
- Review main physics concepts we learned in Mechanics
- Apply physics concepts to real-life examples
- Apply problem-solving strategies
- Recognize the role physics and technology play in our life
To Do
Task 1
Exploration
To Do
2. Discuss it with your group members and answer the following questions:
- What was new to you in the article?
- What was the most interesting?
- Where is Racetrack Playa located?
- What would you like to know about this phenomenon?
3. Record the summary of your answer to include in your assignment paper for submission.
4. Create a concept map of physics related concepts in this article.
You can use technology tools to do this or draw on paper and take a picture of it to add to your assignment for submission.
Task 2
Critical Thinking
To Do
1. Watch the first video by Brian Dunning (2006)
2. Watch the second video by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (2014)
3. Discuss the videos with your group members and answer the following questions:
- What was the first explanations of the motion of rocks?
- Did the exploration in first video (2006) follow scientific method? Explain.
- Did the exploration in the second video (2014) follow scientific method? Explain.
- Why did it take so long to solve the mystery?
4. Record the answers to the questions to include in your assignment paper for submission. Make sure the answers are detailed and include the terms and ideas we discuss in this course. Use diagrams if necessary.
Task 3
Application
To Do
1. Consider a boulder. Draw a free-body diagram illustrated all the forces acting on it.
2. Calculate minimum external force to start the boulder moving. State any assumption you make. Research and write down numerical values for all necessary quantities to substitute into your formula to get a numeric answer. Pay attention to units of measurements. Use SI units.
Show all the steps!
Task 4
Reflection
What have you learned about physics by doing this assignment?
Suggest a current application or future possibilities of the ideas you learned in everyday life or in health related professions. Explain briefly physics behind your example.
The universe is made of stories, not atoms. - Muriel Rukeyser
Credits:
Created with images by fabio lamanna - "The Milky Way and the starry sky over the French Alps and the majestic Barre des Ecrins." • Didgeman - "rock stone boulders"