Go to http://phet.colorado.edu/simulations/sims.php?sim=Electric_Field_Hockey
and click on Run Now.
1. You rub balloons in your hair and then hang them like in the picture below. Explain why you think they move apart and what might affect how far apart they get.
They move apart due to the fact they get charged when rubbing them on your hair and the same charge is on both balloons. The more you rub them on your hair the more charged they will become making the repelling force stronger and more rapid.
2. Test your ideas using Electric Field Hockey in the Practice mode. Make a table to record your observations about what affects the direction and speed of the puck. Your table should demonstrate that you have run controlled tests with all the variables.
It depends on the charge the puck has which determines whether it will be repelled or attracted to the positive and negative balls. Mass also is a factor the less the mass the faster the puck is able to move. How many charges you have near/surrounding the puck is another factor. The more you have in a line the quicker it attracts or repels where you put the charged balls around the puck determines which direction the puck will move.
3. Reflect on your ideas from question #1 and your data from question #2. How do your observations support, dispute or add to your ideas about what affects how charged bodies interact?
It supports my theory that the stronger or more chargers you have that are the same, the stronger the the repelling force will be. In opposite the unlike charges are more likely to attract more quickly when you have more opposite charges. The outcome depends on what charge the puck has.
4. As you put charges onto the playing area, arrows appear on the puck.
What do you think the arrows on the puck are illustrating?
The direction the charged particles will direct the puck.
How do the arrows from the positive charges compare and contrast to