EarthRef.org Digital Archive (ERDA) -- Earthquake Lesson: Elastic Rebound and Friction Lab

Description
This lab exercise teaches students about elastic rebound and friction and how these concepts related to earthquakes. It can be done in small groups or as a classroom demonstration, with students recording data.

Instructions
This lab could be done in small groups or as a classroom demonstration, with students recording data. The lab begins with a few introductory questions written to encourage the students to think about friction and elasticity. The materials required and setup are described in the lab itself. Classrooms with access to a simple range finder can record data on a computer, but this lab can be modified to take measurements with a yardstick. (See alternative experimental setup instructions in the Example Results and Alternative Setup). Advance preparation is recommended for assembling the strips of sandpaper. In the data table, students can record either time in the first column if a range finder and computer is used, or position of the end of the rubberband if a yardstick is used, and position of the block in the second column. These values are then plotted on the supplied graph using the first column data for the x-axis and the second column data for the y-axis. Students may need assistance with making measurements and with plotting. Example data is included.