How to Make a Science Project on How Machines Work
Making a science project on how machines work is the most effective way to learn about the process and and the best way to share your findings with others. An easy simple machine to make is a pulley, which demonstrates how objects can be lifted with little force. Science fair visitors, other students and parents will be impressed and left wanting to further explore the subject.
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Things You'll Need
- 2 to 6 pulleys with hooks
- Wooden frame of desired size
- Spool of nylon string
- 1/2 lb. to 1lb. object to be lifted
- Spring scale
Instructions
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Attach your pulleys to the frame you have chosen using the hooks on the top and bottom of each pulley.
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Each pulley has plastic sheaves and V grooves through which you thread the nylon string. Thread the string over the top of the first pulley, down through the bottom of the second pulley and over the top pulley again.
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Attach your weighted object to the bottom pulley's hook, then pull the string to demonstrate lifting the object. You may use different amounts of pulleys to reduce the lifting force needed. For example, a lever with three pulleys will reduce the lifting force by about 50 percent.
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Make a quad pulley by making the simple pulley and then adding two more pulleys. Crisscross your first thread on the way down to stringing through the bottom of the pulley and looping around the top pulley one last time. When you are finished, you should have two strings through the top sheaves and two strings through the bottom and an "x" in the middle with two straight paths of string on either side. This method will reduce the lifting force by about 75 percent.
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Calculate the lifting force expended by attaching a spring scale to the end of the rope pulled. The spring scale will calculate the force, which you can record to demonstrate the effectiveness of your experiment. The options with this simple machine are limitless. You can then add more pulleys to increase the effect. You can also increase or decrease the weight of the object being lifted.
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