Data Analysis Does the mass of a pinewood derby car affect the speed? If the mass of a pinewood derby car affects speed then the more mass the car has, the faster it will go. The procedures for the experiment were; Go get a pinewood derby track, car, scotch tape, quarters, and a timer. Set up the track. Make the derby car with the instructions included with the kit. Find the mass of the car with no weights added. Race the car 3 times down the track with no weight added. Record times. Add 6 quarters to the car, find the mass then race it 3 times. Record the results. Add 6 more quarters, find the mass then race the car 3 times, and record results. Find the mean for each weight division. Find out which one was the fastest. The control group is the car with no weights added. The experimental groups are the cars with weights added. An independent variable is the weight. The dependant variable is the speed. Some control variables are the track, wheels, and body style. Three different pinewood derby masses were tested in the experiment. 140g, 173g, and 204g. Each weight division was tested 3 times. There was only one car used. This car was altered to show differences in …show more content…
The hypothesis was that the more mass a car has, the faster it will go. This hypothesis was partially rejected though. One reason that the car got slower on the last race could be because of wear and tear. It took awhile for the track to work properly. The end has a wall,and if the car hit it at the high speeds it was going, it may damage the car. Another reason the the results may have not been correct could be because of where the car started. The car was just placed at the top, but never in the same spot. At the very end the car was placed in the very back, which may have made the time longer. Before, it would not be in the very back. This issue may have added .50 seconds or more to the time. Some extraneous variables could be placement, and wear and