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Title
The Effect On A Ping Pong Catapult With More Rubber Bands

Problem Scenario
The catapult didn't fire at first because of the setup. When the setup of the catapult changed the fire rate was better and the catapult fired correctly.

Broad Question
Does the amount of rubber bands effect the catapult that throws a ping pong ball?

Specific Question
Does the amount of rubber bands effect the distance a ping pong ball will go from a catapult?

Hypothesis
I think a ping pong ball will go farther with more rubber bands. The reason I think that is because it will have twice the amount of tension and force then with less rubber bands.

Independent Variable:
Power and distance.

Dependent Variable:
Number of rubber bands.

Variables That Need To Be Controlled:
Size of arm, size of cup, and rubber band size.

Vocabulary List That Needs Explanation
There is no vocabulary that needs explanation.

General Plan
The beginning of this project was good but there was some defects of the design. When the design was perfect the catapult worked better. Once the catapult was setup the data I collected went into a drawing. Halfway through the project I started making the the final draft of both graphs. When the final drafts were complete they got put into my wiki page. At the end of my project I made sure that everything was complete and it was.

Potential Problems And Solutions
The rubber bands may break. I can replace them.

Safety Or Environmental Concerns
You may get your finger caught in between the wood.

Resources and Budget Table

 * Ping Pong Ball || Free ||
 * Wood || Free ||
 * Hooks || Free ||
 * Plastic Cup || Free ||
 * Screws || Free ||
 * Rubber Bands || $2.00 ||

Data Table

 * Number Of Trials || Amount Of Rubber Bands || Distance Ping Pong Ball Flew (CM) ||
 * 1 || 1 || 219 ||
 * 2 || 1 || 218 ||
 * 3 || 1 || 220 ||
 * 4 || 2 || 436 ||
 * 5 || 2 || 433 ||
 * 6 || 2 || 426 ||
 * 7 || 3 || 633 ||
 * 8 || 3 || 627 ||
 * 9 || 3 || 629 ||

Background Research
. The catapult was a large military machine that was used to throw objects such as, rocks and spears. The catapult started as a crossbow and got bigger over time. Before it became a catapult it was a belly bow which was put on a knight's suit of armor. When the size changed the way they operated changed. They found out catapults were an offshoot of a crossbow. Catapults were also used to hurl large objects over far distances.

The catapult was used in the Middle Ages to destroy the walls of a castle. The earliest writings of catapults were that they originated in China around the 3rd and 4th Century BC and this type of catapult was much like a big crossbow. The catapult is a big machine that stores energy to launch an object such as, stones and spears. Some catapults were mounted into the ground and on a nights belly. Most catapults were on wheels and were able to be pulled by five or less men.

When the catapult launches an object, it gives it both a vertical speed and a horizontal speed. The shooting angle effects the distance it will launch an object. The number and size of the rubber bands will make the catapult better or worse. The physics of a catapult will affect many things and make a design not work.

When there is more rubber bands on a catapult the catapult will launch a ping pong ball farther because there is more tension and force making the arm go up faster. The arm has to be a certain length for a perfect launch. If the arm is too short it will not launch the ping pong ball correctly.

Detailed Procedure
The way to restart my experiment is getting around thirty new rubber bands. Then you set the catapult up with one rubber band and move your way up but you use new rubber bands each time. The last part to restarting my experiment is launching the catapult and collecting data.

Data Analysis
The trials with three rubber bands went about 200 more then the trials with two rubber bands. Also, every time I added one rubber band it went up by 200. The next one should be 800 then 1000 if the pattern continues. If the pattern doesn't continue the data would be a lot different. The reason it went up by 200 each time is it had more power but the power may start going down.

Conclusion
More rubber bands effects a catapult because it has more tension. Also, it makes it so the catapult will have more power to launch a ping pong ball. Three rubber bands had three times the amount of tension compared to the trial with one rubber band. More rubber bands will give more tension and tension is power so more tension will give more power. The power is what launches the ping pong ball.

Discussion
My experiment was about launching a ping pong ball.

Benefit to Community and/or Science
A benefit to science is you are able to predict where the ping pong ball will land because it will go around two hundred feet farther then before. Also, it will go on like this for many trials.

Abstract
The reason I did a ping pong catapult is because I thought it would be a good project and would get me a good grade. Also, the catapult was interesting to me and I wanted to find out what made a catapult launch something at a certain trajectory. I find out that the catapult was invented in the 3rd and 4th BC. The catapult was invented in China and it as used for launching objects such as rocks and spears.