Crystal Hernandez Physical Science, 7A Mr. Brock 10/5/17
“How High can a Basketball Bounce”
Research Paper:
The goal of this experiment is to determine which surface and height allows the basketball to bounce the highest. My initial idea of performing the experiment is to test bouncing a basketball ball on different surfaces and to drop the basketball from different heights reaches . During my experiment I will conduct 5 trials of dropping the ball at 40 inches on four different surfaces. The next trial I will perform will be to test how high the ball bounces when dropped on to the concrete from different heights. I will drop the ball starting at 4 feet and increasing the ball dropping by 6 inches to eventually drop the ball at 6 feet.
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When a basketball is held in the air, it has potential energy and no kinetic energy. When it starts to fall, it starts to losing potential energy and gaining kinetic energy. The bounce factor between a basketball and bowling ball is different in many ways, basketball is inflated with air and made with rubber that are able to bounce with a force on it. Bowling balls are made out of dense hardwood that are not able to bounce. Many more ways that affects a way the ball bounces are the height which the ball is dropped, the ball’s level of inflation, the temperature of the outside, and the surface the ball bounces on. Different surfaces equals different bounce. The surface when a ball is bounced also changes shape when the ball drops on it. Springier surfaces changes more as a ball hits it and saves the molecules inside the ball so it does not flatten. Soft surfaces absorbs most of the ball’s energy and stops the ball from bouncing back. The knowledge gained by the research of my topic was that there is three different types of energy when using a basketball. When the ball is held it is potential, when the ball hits the ground it is