EST Lab #6: Experimental Cratering (50 minutes)

Prediction is an important part of science.  Some people might ask "How do you know that science is 'true' "?  There is no way to prove that science is true in an absolute sense.  But we can show that science "works", that is, it predicts the future.  I want you to make a prediction.  At the end of the class period, I am going to drop a marble into a tray of sand.  I will tell you just before I drop it what height I will drop it from (you don't know that yet though).  You will have 1 minute to predict the size of the crater that will be formed by the marble, but can not at that time do an experiment.  I will measure the crater from the top of the rim on one side to the top of the rim on the other side.  Your lab grade will be based on your prediction.  If you are within 10% of the correct value, you get an A (95%), if within 15% of correct, you get a B (84%), if within 20% you get a C (72%), 25% a D (58%), and greater than 30% off you get an F (49%).  Your materials are a tray, sand, marble, ruler, string, graph paper.

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