Laser laws
This is my third project in Scimatics. I worked with 2 other classmates, Sepaus and Carter to answer the project’s driving question: How can we test the Pythagorean theorem and the law of reflection. We worked together and individually on assignments to complete the project.
Questioning and predicting
We began the project by getting an idea of what the Pythagorean theorem and laws of reflection were. The very first assignment was to make a mindmap of what we already knew about these topics. We worked on multiple workbooks, a Khan academy quiz, and a few other assignments. I showed that I was very focused on each assignment and used my time on each assignment efficiently.
Communicating and Representing
After learning more about the Pythagorean theorem I had to make a display of a right triangle using the Pythagorean theorem and law of reflection. This took me a couple days to complete but finished it on time. To make this diagram, I used a website that had all the tools i needed like rulers, protractors and mirrors.I used different measurements and angles to get the laser to bounce off in the directions I wanted. I first made a prediction and then recorded all of my data in a section of my assignment. I then completed the conclusion and answered my questions I had in the beginning.
Applying and Innovating
The final piece of the project was to make a laser display in real life. With my group members, we built a real life laser display using cardboard, mirrors, and lasers. We made 2 drafts until our design finally worked and when it did, it was incredible. We started by drawing out how the triangle was going to look and then measurements. After that we added mirrors and tested the laser on them. I found a really easy to make your laser bounce off in the direction you want: you line up the 2 lines and with the mirror you try to make a + sign. With that and our measurements, we properly made our triangle using a laser. All that was left was to measure the incident reflected angles and complete the extending part of milestone 5. One of my classmates offered to let the class use his smoke machine so we could properly see the lasers when we presented them.
In the end this was an awesome project. I loved the end and the idea of it. Other than some parts that I found hard to understand, I really enjoyed working on this project. I learned so much and hope that I put this knowledge to use I in the near future.
Bye for now👋