Elroy's Reflection

I AM A PUSH OR PULL. I AM A FORCE.

We just finished learning about projectile motion, and have moved into electrostatics. However, with the current knowledge of said topic, we can apply what we know into the question that was stated. In projectile motion (2D), there are 3 main forces that act on an object before it becomes a projectile. The force applied to it, launched at any angle, is what turns it into a projectile; the force of gravity is the vertical force that pulls the projectile to the ground, and the force of air friction is what slows it down- depending on how the projectile was launched.

In shot put, like for most projectiles, it is launched at an angle, so it can travel longer and cover more distance. But in order for a projectile to travel far, it must be launched with great velocity; and shot puts are thrown as so. However, in our world filled with air, the faster something travels, the more force of air resistance affects that projectile, resulting in a non-symmetrical parabola if it was graphed. In a real-life situation where the wind doesn’t stay still, the wind could blow against the shot put, thus slowing it down, or blow it further.

Learning about projectiles was definitely fun, but no one said it was a walk in the park. What I found difficult about this topic, was understanding the x and y factors of a force which is at an angle. In this project, we didn’t do any physical calculations, but more on theoretical perspectives. If the shot put was launched in a vacuum, things would be a lot easier to understand because nothing is physically slowing it down. But in reality, everything that moves will be affected by air resistance, and will be slowed down. It was weird thinking about air resistance at an angle, because of its x and y factors, but I later overcame that problem with a little thinking.

                I am strong on the theoretical part on projectile motion, but I am stronger in the calculations part because I can physically prove my point though math. When I struggle to understand something through theoretical aspects, I try to punch those bits of knowledge into equations we learned, and help myself understand without someone giving me the answer, for example my team members. When we thought about the whole projectile motion project with a shot put, I imagined a freed body diagram on how it would travel, and how the forces affect it, just to give me a clear understanding of the topic.