How Far Can A Catapult Shoot

Question~ Does a Catapult shoot precisely every round it shoots or is it unpredictable?

Hypothesis~ I hypothesize that it wont change that much and if does change, it will only change a little. I also believe that it is unpredictable because of the wind and type of balls.

Procedure

1. I first created my design on Inventors Pro.

2. Then I copied down the measurements and gathered up the types of wood I needed.

3. The next step I did was to grab another piece of wood (piece of plank) and drew some of the pieces I needed and cut them into the right measurements

4. I next built my catapult using a drill and a saw.

5. I then grabbed the 4 wheels and put the catapult on the wheels.

6. After the catapult was built, I tested and copied my data down.

Where Will It Land?

In my experiment, I wanted to find out whether or not a catapult would hit the same spot when shot more than once. The only reason I choose this is because I like to build and I like to shoot things. I knew I would have a lot of fun and I never built one before. I hypothesize that it is unpredictable and you can not predict where it will land.

My catapult was a very challenging project. The first change to “step” was to make the plans on Inventor Pro which allows me to draw out a 3d version of my project. The next step I had to do was draw out each piece on a plank of wood. After that, I cut the pieces into the right measurements using a power saw with supervision. Then, I took those pieces and drilled the holes where they needed to be. Lastly, I put my catapult together, with a drill, and it came out to shoot pretty far. I had to shoot twice in one round of testing. The amount of testing I did was five rounds. After that I found the average of the two numbers. Next, I marked where the two balls landed. Then, I measured the distance from up and down and side to side from where the balls hit the ground. I lastly found that average. Overall, this was a fun project to complete and the catapult was a success.

After creating the catapult, I had to test and shoot the catapult. My first test went pretty well and went far. I added the two tosses to find the average. The 1st toss was 264 inches and the 2nd toss was 267.8 inches. Altogether, the average was for both the tosses in the first round. In the second round, the ball also went pretty far. The two tosses were 258.6 inches and 263.2 inches. The average came out to be 260.9 inches. In the third round, the balls went even further. The two tosses were 269.1 inches and 264.5 inches. The average was 266.8 inches. In the fourth round, the balls did not go as far as the other ones. The two tosses were 259.9 inches and 259 inches. The average came out to be 257.9 inches. In the last round, the balls also went far and the two tosses were 263.2 inches and 261.6 inches. The average came out to be 262.4 inches. After I measured how far the ball went, I measured the distance from the two balls horizontal and vertical.

Overall, this project was a success and went very well. I had many risks and safeties during the science fair. My risks and safeties while building and testing the catapult were using a power saw and shooting the catapult. I could not hit anything while shooting and I had to wear goggles while cutting the wood. This was a very fun project . During this project I learned that catapults are unpredictable.

Conclusion

The reason I believe catapults are unpredictable is because you can never predict the future. There are also many variables that stood out during this project. These variables include; the way the catapult released, air resistance, and the friction from the wind. My data clearly shows that the catapult ball did not hit the same spot every time and spells out that it is unpredictable. Overall, my experience was very accurate. The reason my experiment was accurate was because I tested many times and found the average as well. The only thing I could have done better was create my catapult more precisely and nicer.

Catapult Difference