Design

Criterion C: Gravity of the Different Planets

This simulates the gravity of the different planets acting in a bouncing ball.

Click on the different planets to change the acceleration.

You can also control the ball position using the left and right arrow keys.

Criterion A - Inquiring and Analyzing

CRITERION A: INQUIRING AND ANALYZING

Research Question

How can simulations on Scratch help Physics students understand the concept of Gravity and its comparison on the different planets?

Introduction

Across the solar system, there are different bodies of mass called planets, all of which have different characteristics, the main one being their mass, which influences the gravitational pull on other objects. No two planets have the same mass, and therefore do not have the same gravitational pull. Therefore a ball in free fall will accelerate differently on Venus and Uranus.

I want to create a program on Scratch that allows easy visualization and comparison of the different gravity on the 8 planets of our solar system. Apart from the basic Physics concept of Gravity, my program will also add some astronomy concepts and teach students about the planet that they are going to visit during this activity.

The Scenario

Gravity is a concept which is taught in Physics and it is very relevant for students to understand the comparison of the gravity of different planets. I was approached by Mr. Smith, Head of the Physics Department of Head-Start School Dubai to design an interesting software that could be used by the students as an in-class activity to compare the gravity of different planets.

Head-Start School Dubai, therefore, had a need to design an in-class activity for their Physics lesson on gravitational force and asked me to design the software for them. At the moment the students are only being taught from their textbook which is boring and not practical. My software will be useful for the school because they will have a new and interesting hands-on activity along with new technologies in the classroom to help the students and teachers during their lessons.

In order to know about the exact requirements of the software, I will interview Mr. Smith, the Head of Physics Department at the Head-Start School Dubai who is the main person who will use this software in the classroom for the students. I will also ask him about the features that he would like me to introduce in the software so that the product can be developed to meet the particular needs of his students and the lesson.

Research Plan

I will research	Gathering the Info	Why research this?	Dates
Head-Start School Dubai	Primary Research Interview Mr. Smith at the Head-Start School Dubai.	To understand the particular requirements of the students during the physics lesson so that my software meets his requirements of the in-class activity.	January 24, 2016
Planet Characteristics and Gravity	Secondary Research Visit different websites on Physics and Astronomy to gather the required data for my software	This will help create a real-life simulation which would be of educational use for the Physics students in Mr. Smith’s classroom.	January 30 2016.

Primary Research

The Interview

Interview with Mr. Smith, Head of Physics Department, Head-Start School Dubai.

Me: Good morning Mr. Smith. Thanks for calling me here and I would be glad to discuss the requirements that you have to design the in-class activity for your students. What are you using at the present moment and why do you need my software?

Mr. Smith: Good morning Subhadeep and thanks a lot for coming. The concept of Gravity is being taught only from the textbook and I feel that the students cannot really appreciate the difference between the gravitational force on different planets. They find the lessons very boring and there is no in-class activity that I can do with the students that would help them understand the concepts better.

Me: What features are you looking for in the in-class activity?

Mr. Smith: What I can think of is that maybe you can take a ball in free fall and develop a simulation exercise where the students can choose a particular planet. So, once they choose a planet, say Mercury, they can easily see the effect on gravity on the ball on Mercury. Then, when they choose Venus and see the effect it would be a visual learning where they can immediately make a comparison between the gravity on the ball on the planets.

Me: What kind of information do you want the students to know from this activity?

Mr. Smith: First of all, there should be the bouncing ball that I mentioned to you earlier and there should be the feature where they choose a planet. Secondly, I think it would be very educational for the students if you can include some astronomical aspects as well such as their temperature, density, surface composition, etc. Say, once they choose Mercury, the student can see its temperature is 420 C to -150 C, or that its density is 5.43 g/cm3, then there would be some further learning.

Me: Thanks a lot Mr. Smith. I think I can understand what you are looking for. Let me begin with the simulation software and I will contact you with my further queries as I design the program for you.

Mr. Smith: Thank you Subhadeep and please feel free to contact me anytime you wish to.

Secondary Research

My Secondary Research will help me understand the features of the planets that Mr. Smith wants me to add into the software.

The relevant data that needs to be collected to program the comparison of gravity on different planet and to be incorporated into the physics in-class activity would be

-        Gravity on the different planets

-        Mass of the planets

-        Diameter of the planets

-        Air pressure of the different planets

-        Atmosphere of the planets

-        Relative sizes of the planets

-        Surface composition of each planet

-        Temperatures on the planets

-        Density of the planets

-        Length of one day on each planet

-        Distance from the sun

-        Number of moons of the planet

The data would be sources from the Internet from the websites related to Astronomy. I would also get information from newspapers, magazines and books related to Physics and Astronomy.

SWOT Analysis

Strengths	Weaknesses
-        It is easy to program and use -        It provides and accurate simulation of falling objects on different planets -        It is user-friendly and fun	-        Looks unprofessional -        Atmospheric simulations may not be realistic -        Glitches in software
Opportunities	Threats
-        Can help many students compare the gravity of different planets - Students will also learn about astronomical aspects about each planet	-        Unprofessional look may cause fewer people to trust the software

Design Brief

-        Bouncing ball

-        Accurate simulations of gravity

-        Ability to choose planets

-        Switch to remove or add features like atmosphere and surface composition

-        Planet statistics (temperature, density, number of moons, duration of a day, etc.)

-        Pictures of planet surfaces

Subatomic Particles Explorer

Dodge anything that's RED

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