Name: _______________________
Class: ________ #: _______
Humpty Dumpty Security Force: Egg Drop Lab
You have been appointed to Humpty’s security force. You will follow the scientific method
to determine how to keep Humpty Dumpty from falling apart.
SUPPLIES
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•
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Egg (hard boiled)
Building materials (tape, cotton, Kleenex box, etc…)
Measuring tape
Timer
BACKGROUND
In order to be on the security force, you need to know what you are working against. There
are 3 main forces involved in Humpty’s great fall.
1. Gravity: the force that pulls objects toward each other and toward the center of the
earth. (9.8 m/s2)
2. Drag: the force that opposes movement. In this case, it’s the air resistance against
Humpty as he falls.
3. Impact: the force applied over a short period of time when two objects collide. The
force that occurs when Humpty collides with the ground.
How do Newton’s Laws apply to the task at hand?
The egg will be dropped and be pulled by gravity down unless a force acts on it to prevent it.
(Newton’s 1st Law) The egg will hit with a force that is determined by the size of the egg (mass) and
the height of the fall, which changes the velocity/speed. (Newton’s 2nd Law). When the egg lands, it
will hit the ground with the force that it has generated during the fall and the ground will push back
up on the egg with equal force. (Newton’s 3rd Law). This causes the egg to break in the original
story.
Experiment and Design
Create an egg protection device that will increase drag (air-resistance) and decrease the
force of impact so that Humpty arrives on the ground safe and sound. *You may need to
make multiple
Humpty Dumpty Security Force: Egg Drop Lab
Prototype blueprint
Collect and analyze the data
Helpful formulas: Speed = distance (m) / time (s)
Acceleration = ∆ Velocity/ ∆ Time
FORCE = mass * acceleration
1. How far is humpty falling? What is the height? ____________ m
2. How much mass does Humpty have? ___________________ kg
3. What was Humpty’s rate of acceleration? _______________ m/s2
4. How much force acted on Humpty at impact? _____________ N
5. When he landed, did Humpty remain unharmed? Describe Humpty’s condition.
6. How did you design work to prevent harm? Describe your design in relation to
drag (air resistance), speed/acceleration, and force of impact.
7. What would you do differently next time? Why?