SI Challenge Book

By Katie Fearon
Section Blue

Table of Contents
Page Content

1 Title (include first and last name)
2 Table of contents
3-4 Your own written procedures for
creating a ruler in centimeters
5 Picture of your ruler
6-7 Your own written procedures for
creating a graduated cylinder in milliliters
8 Picture of your graduated cylinder
9-10 Your own written procedures for creating
a balance in grams
11 Picture of your balance
12-13 Length of rod, volume of rod, mass of
rod
14-15 Your own written procedure for
calculating the density of the rod AND your
calculated density of the rod

Ruler Procedure
Materials:


1 washer or weight



1 piece of string about the length of your forearm



a table to swing your pendulum from



1 pen/writing utensil



1 pair of scissors



1 stopwatch or clock



2 pieces of blank printer paper

Procedure:

1. Take a piece of string, about the length of your forearm, and tie
your washer/weight onto the end


2. Hold the top of the string on the edge of the desk, and pull the
weight up so that the string it is attached to is at a 180 degree angle.


3. Let go of the weight, and use a stopwatch or the clock to keep
time. Count how many swings the pendulum makes in 15 seconds (one
swing is going to the opposite side and back to the original starting place.
Ex: start at the right, go to the left, and back to the right) Your goal is to get
the string to the the right length so that it swings 15 times in 15 seconds,
which is equal to 25 cm.


4. Adjust the length of the string to make it longer or shorter, based
on the number of swings you got. (Longer if you got too many swings in 15
seconds, and shorter if you didnt get enough swings)


5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 until the string is the right length so the
pendulum swings 15 times in 15 seconds.


6. Once you have gotten the string to be the right length, mark the
point where you hold the string to swing (where the string attaches to the
table). Do this either with a pen (coloring the point), or with scissors (cutting
at that point)

Ruler creation:
7.
Take a piece of paper, and align the bottom of the weight with the
narrow end of the paper.

8. Keeping the weight in place, pull the string out so that it is
straightened, but not super tight.

9. Mark this point on the paper

10. Create a straight line perpendicular to the string from the
pendulum

11. Use the scissors to cut off the excess paper so that you are left
with a rectangle with a length of 25 cm, your pendulum length being your
long side (25 cm!), and the original width of the paper being your short side.

12. Now you need to divide your ruler into fifths. To do this, start by
folding your paper in half, hamburger style, and position your paper so that
the folded edge is on your left

13. Next, fold the upper right hand corner down, so that the top of the
paper is now aligned with the folded crease

14. Fold the corner that used to be the upper right hand corner, but is
now aligned with the crease side, up so that the bottom of the triangle is
even with the hypotenuse

15. Repeat steps 13 and 14 for the bottom of the paper

16. Once this is completed, unfold the paper completely

17. There should be 4 creases, 2 on the top right, and 2 on the bottom
right. Draw a line connecting the two creases that are in between the edge
of the paper and the crease closest to the middle crease.

18. Cut along this line

19. The smaller chunk is equal to one fifth of your pendulum length, or
5 cm.

20. Take your second piece of paper, and measure out the length of
your pendulum again

21. Use your one fifth cut out to divide your ruler into 5 cm sections

22. To get down to 1 cm, repeat steps 12-18, but instead use the one
fifth measuring cut out. (make sure to use the width- the short side- so that
you get th of that distance, not of the length.)

23. Once you have your 1 cm measurement, mark that onto your ruler

24. Congratulations, you have completed your very own 25 cm ruler!

*For help on the folding steps go to this tutorial:* https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=Tx5rYBQs6F4

Picture of Ruler

Graduated Cylinder
Materials:

scotch tape

a piece of paper

a test tube, about the size of a white board marker

a sharpie

a pair of scissors

your 25 cm ruler

Procedure:
Box Creation:

1. Using your ruler, measure and draw 6, 1 cm squares,
and draw them into a T formation (draw 4 of the squares in a line,
and draw two coming off the sides at the top)*refer to the image
below for a diagram*

2. Cut out your T shape along the edges, but do NOT cut
out each individual square

3. Make creases along the lines

4. Fold the shape into a box by wrapping the long side up
and around, and folding the 2 squares sticking off up and in

5. Use the scotch tape to attach the sides and hold the box
together

*diagram*

Making the Graduated Cylinder: 1cm cubed = 1mL

1. Take your test tube and fill it up with water about half
way

2. Use the sharpie to draw a line at the water level

3. Drop your 1 cm cube into the water if it floats, use the tip
of the scissors or a pen to push it down, just make sure that the
other item isnt in the water

4. Now draw another line at the water level

5. Dump out the water, but save the cube

6. Use the second sheet of paper, and make a 1 mL
template by aligning the base of the paper with the first line on the
test tube, and using the sharpie to draw a second line on the
paper that is even with the second line on the test tube. The
length of the line you draw doesnt really matter, just make it long
enough that you can see it and cut it out.

7. Draw another line perpendicular to the edge of the paper
and the line you drew

8. Cut out your shape

9. Use this cut out to draw 1 mL increments along the test
tube, but dont go all the way to the bottom- you should still go to
the top though

10. Cover the part of the test tube where the tick marks are
with scotch tape.

11. Congratulations, you have completed your graduated
cylinder!

Picture of Graduated Cylinder

Balance Procedure
Materials:
1 piece of pipe, about the length of your forearm
a small tupperware container
2 Petri dishes
blue masking tape
1 rubber band
a piece of wood with holes drilled in it, with 3
columns (the wood should be a little longer than the pipe)
scotch tape
a pipet
your graduated cylinder
water (1 mL to create the gram and some to
measure how much mass the object you are balancing
has)
2 dixie cups


Procedure:

Setting up the materials:
1. Separate the two petri dishes, and put the two
deeper dishes aside for later. You will not need the
shallower sides of the dish.
2. Use your graduated cylinder to measure any
amount of water, just make sure it is aligned with one of
the milliliter dashes.
3. Use the pipet to suck up one milliliter of water.
4. Drop this water into one of the dixie cups and put
aside for later

Creating the Balance:

1. Take the piece of wood with the holes in it and
find the middle row of holes (there should be 3 holes in
this row.
2. String the rubber band through the outside hole,
up and out, and back down into the other outside hole.
3. If you turn the wood over, there should be two
loops made by the rubber band. Put the pipe through
these two loops, and center the wood so that the pipe
and the wood form a plus shape.
4. Using the scotch tape, tape the two petri dishes to
the wood. Attach them to the end of the wood, and have
the end of the dish aligned with the end of the wood.
5. Take the tupperware container and the pipe with
the wood contraption attached to it, and use the masking
tape to tape the pipe to the container. Make sure that the
pipe is centered on the container, and that the rubber
band attachment is straight.


Creating the gram:
1. Take your dixie cup with water and place it on one
of the petri dishes.The water (not the Dixie cup) is equal
to one gram.

Measurements an

nd photos of Rod

Measuring and ca

Materials:


1 mystery rod


1 balance (and two dixie cups)


1 ruler


1 graduated cylinder


1 pipet


1 graduated cylinder full, of water


Procedure:

Length:

1. Use your ruler to measure the length of your rod

2. Align the bottom of the rod with the bottom of your ruler

3. Record the number where the rod ends as the length of the rod, and do

4. This range is the length of your rod in cm

Volume:

1. Take your graduated cylinder and fill it up about halfway with water, but
number using a range.

2. Slide your mystery rod into the water. Document the water level numbe

3. To calculate the volume of the rod, subtract the original water level from
your rods volume. When doing this, remember to take into account your range b
water level, and the smaller number original water level from the larger new water


Mass:

1. Start by making sure that your balance is balanced

2. Take one of the dixie cups and place the mystery rod in it, but do not pl

3. Use a pipet to measure 1 mL of water and drop this into the other Dixie

4. Place both dixie cups, on the balance, with one on either side

5. If the side with the rod is lower, add another mL of water to the other sid
the graduated cylinder where you originally got the water from. Make sure while y
of the balance.

6. Repeat step 5 until your balance is balanced, and record this amount a

7. The amount of water (mL) is equal to the mass of your rod in grams


Density:

1. Using your mass and volume ranges, calculate the density by using the

2. Divide your smallest mass number by your largest volume number, and
density range.

alculating density

o this as a range

t make sure that it measures to the nearest milliliter. Document the water level

er using a range.
m the new water level after the rod has been placed in the water. This number is
by subtracting the larger original water level number from the smaller number new
r level number.

lace it on the balance yet.

e cup

de. If the side with the water is lower, remove a small amount of water back to
you are doing this you are keeping track of how much water is on the other side

as a range.

e equation mass (g)/volume (cm cubed)

d your largest mass number by your smallest volume number. This is your