Question

A student notices that when a weight is hung on a spring, the spring stretches. She decides to conduct an experiment to determine the relationship between the amount of weight placed on a spring and the distance the spring stretches. She has five different weights: 25 9,50 9,75 9, 1009, and 125 9. She selects a weight, hangs it on the spring, and measures how far the spring stretches. What should be kept constant throughout this experiment?

A) the time of day when the experiment is performed
B) the distance the spring stretches
C) the spring that is used
D) the weight hung from the spring

Answer 1

In the experiment to determine the relationship between weight and the extension of a spring, the spring used should stay constant. This ensures that the spring’s force constant doesn't introduce variability, leading to a consistent measure of the restoring force for different weights.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student seeks to understand the relationship between the weight placed on a spring and the distance the spring stretches. For a fair and reliable experiment, it's crucial to keep certain variables constant while changing others systematically. In this case, the student should ensure that the spring that is used remains constant (Option C). This is because the spring’s force constant, a measure of its stiffness, could affect the outcome of the experiment if it were to vary. Changing springs could introduce a variable that could alter the restoring force exerted by the spring, leading to inconsistent results. Therefore, the same spring should be used throughout the experiment to ensure that any variation in the distance stretched is solely due to the change in the weight hung from the spring.