An Investigation of the Factors Affecting the Period of a Pendulum

An Investigation of the Factors Affecting the Period of a Pendulum

I could investigate the following factors:

* Angle of displacement

* Length of string

* Pendulum weight

I am going to investigate and see if varying the length of string will

affect the period of the pendulum.

My prediction is: The longer the string the longer the period. The

period will be longer as the pendulum has farther to travel. My theory

is demonstrated below.

Pendulum A has a shorter string. This gives it a shorter period.

Pendulum B has a longer string and has a much larger period as it has

farther to travel to get from X to Y to X which is one period.

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I made my prediction based on a previous experiment I have done. The

length affected the period as stated above and I think this will

happen again in this experiment. I looked at a clock with a pendulum

to see how it worked. I found that to change the speed of a second you

adjust the length of the pole which the pendulum hangs from, so I also

based my prediction on that as it is the same principle.

I set up a trial experiment to test out the following:

* Which angle of displacement to use (e.g. 90°)

* How many readings to take

* Which lengths of string to measure (e.g. every 10cm)

* Where to carry out the experiment (on a desk/floor etc..)

To ensure the test is fair I am going to:

* Use the same piece of string

* Use the same weight pendulum (preferably the exact same pendulum)

* Make sure the string is measured accurately

To ensure the test is safe I am going to:

* Use a sensible angle of displacement

* Not to swing the pendulum near others

To ensure the test is accurate I am going to: