Physics students are completing an experiment to better understand the factors that affect rotational motion. In their apparatus, a rope is attached to a toy lifeboat, passes over a pulley, and is wrapped around a cylinder that rotates on an axle through the center, as shown below (note the figure is not drawn to scale.) ?The pulley has negligible rotational inertia and negligible friction, and the cylinder rotates with negligible friction.

In their procedure, the system is released from rest. As the boat accelerates downward, it pulls the rope, which causes the cylinder to start rotating. The following shows the physical quantities collected and calculated values for the experiment:

Collected and Calculated Physical Quantities:

Mass of Boat (kg)

Linear Acceleration of Boat (m/s2)

Angular Accelerations of Cylinder (rad/s2)

Tension in a String (N)

Torque Exerted on Cylinder by Rope (Nm)

1. ?What materials will the students need to measure the necessary data? Identify the quantity to be measured, the equipment for measurement, and the unit of measurement. (3 ?points)

2. ?The students run trials by adding mass to the boat to change the total mass. Explain how the mass of the boat impacts linear acceleration downward and the rotation of the cylinder. (2 ?points)

3. ?Describe how the angular acceleration of the cylinder is related to the linear acceleration of the toy boat. (2 ?points)

4. ?The students now want to determine the rotational inertia of the cylinder. Using the table above, identify the necessary variables that should be plotted, and on which axes, to produce a straight line whose slope will calculate the rotational inertia. (5 ?points)

5. ?If a gear with a larger radius and mass was used instead, describe the changes to the data and calculated quantities from above the students would expect to see. (3 ?points)