Rita M. O’Keefe
ACTIVITY #7
TOPIC: Wave Energy
OBJECTIVE:
To demonstrate the forward movement of a wave
MATERIALS:
Book, 8 marbles, ruler
PROCEDURE:
Lay the book on a table or floor. Open the book and place 4 marbles together in the center of the groove of the book. Position one marble about 3 cm. from the other marbles and thump it toward the last of the group of marbles. Try using different size books, number and types of marbles. What other ways could you vary this experiment?
OBSERVATION:
What happens when the thumped marble strikes the end marble? What happens to the original end marbles? the center marbles? Record and sketch your observations and label.
EXPLANATION:
The thumped marble stops when it strikes the end marble, and the marble on the opposite end of the group moves away from the group. The thumped marble has kinetic energy and upon contact, this energy is transferred to the stationary marble which in turn transferred it to the marble next to it. Every marble transfers the energy to the next marble until the end marble receives it and moves forward. Any marble would move forward if it weren’t blocked by another marble. Although water waves appear to move forward, only the energy is transferred from one water molecule to the next, and each water molecule stays in relatively the same place. Like the end marble, liquid moves forward when there is nothing holding it back.
Adapted from experiment in Earth Science for Every Kid by Janice VanCleave
ACTIVITY #8
TITLE: Pressure and the Earth’s Crust
OBJECTIVE:
To demonstrate how pressure affects the earth’s crust
MATERIALS:
1 sheet of newspaper, 1 sheet of tissue paper
PROCEDURE:
Fold the paper in half. Keep folding the newspaper as many times as possible. Do the same with the paper bag. Think of other materials to use to vary this experiment.
OBSERVATION:
What happens as you continue to fold the paper? How many times are you able to fold it? Does the type of paper affect the number of times you can fold it? Make a sketch and label.
EXPLANATION:
The paper becomes increasingly harder to fold. After 8 foldings there are 256 sheets. Like the paper, the earth’s crust requires little pressure to fold thin, lighter layers on the surface. Enormous amounts of pressure are required to fold over large, denser sections of land.
Adapted from experiment in Earth Science for Every Kid by Janice VanCleave
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Additional information on the topics in this unit can be found on the Internet World Wide Web and in museums across the country. Museums in the Northeast include:
Yale Peabody Museum
170 Whitney Avenue
New Haven, CT 06511
(203)436-0850
Vermont Marble Exhibit
Route 3
Proctor, VT 05765
(802)459-3311
Harvard University Mineralogical
And Geological Museum
24 Oxford Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
(617)495-3045
National Museum of Natural History
Tenth Street & Constitution Ave. NW
Washington, D.C. 20560
(202)357-2810
Southeast Museum
Main Street
Brewster, NY 10509
(914)279-7500
American Museum of Natural History
Central Park West at 79th NY 10024
New York, NY 10024
(212)732-1236