| Trampoline Applet IMPORTANT: This is a new window. To return to where you were please close this window. Norman has just aquired a new high-tech trampoline which will greatly increase his jumping power! Help him try it out and at the same time learn something about the vertical component of ballistic motion. How Do I Use It? To run this simulation press the "ok" button and take a moment to look over the data on the left side of the screen. Now press "start". You can pause the simulation at any time by pressing the "stop" button. Press start again to unpause it or press the "reset" button to make the input area reappear. The input area, which is inside the blue box, allows you to control the speed with which Norman jumps and the strength of gravity. As you run the program you may observe the changes in Norman's height, velocity, kinetic energy and potential energy in the data area to the left. Things to Try Observe that as Norman's height increases his speed decreases and he gains more potential energy. Watch the balance between kinetic and potential energy and notice that when Norman reaches his maximum height he has 100% potential energy and 0% kinetic energy. Although the values for both types of energy are always changing Norman's total energy stays the same. Change the gravity strength from 100 (Earth's strength) to 260 (Jupiter's strength). How does this affect how high Norman jumps? |