Crumple Zones_Gizmo - Student Exploration

Student Exploration: Crumple Zones Vocabulary: acceleration, airbag, collision avoidance system, crash test dummy, crumple zone, force, kinetic energy, Newton’s laws of motion, safety cell, seat belt, work, work-energy theorem Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using the Gizmo.) Two burglars run down an alley at night, trying to escape the cops. Jack is carrying a rigid metal safe. Jill is carrying an armful of antique quilts. In the pitch dark, they both collide headlong into a concrete wall. 1. Who do you think will be hurt more in the collision, and why? Jack because F=ma so the bigger the mass is the bigger the force in which the impact will occur. 2. During a car crash, what features of the car might act like either Jack’s safe or Jill’s quilts? The weight of the car and all of it posterior structure is going to be Jack’s safe and Jill’s quilts is going to be the air bags. Gizmo Warm-up When cars were first invented, the safety of passengers was not a great concern. As vehicles grew larger and faster, accidents became more deadly. Safety features went from being a rare luxury to a legal requirement. In the Crumple Zones Gizmo, you will design cars that will help a crash test dummy survive a collision. 1. To begin, do not make any changes to the DESIGN tab of the Gizmo. Select the CRASH TEST tab, and click Play (). After the crash, click Slo-mo replay. What happens? Slo-mo replay shows what’s happening to the dummy and the car when it crashes. 2. Select the RESULTS tab to read about the results of the crash. Do you think a passenger would have survived this car crash? Explain. He wouldn’t survive because he decelerate Get the Gizmo ready: • Click Reset (). • On the DESIGN tab, check that Sedan is selected. Activity A: Surviving a crash much faster than the car did and max force was a