Westminster High School

MATH PHYSICS

Physics Laboratory Activity Can You Match the Tempo? The tempo of a song is the rate or frequency f of music in units of beats per second. Frequency is the inverse of period, therefore f = 1/T. The period of a simple pendulum T = 2𝜋 in seconds where L is the length of the pendulum arm and g is the Procedure/Analysis √ L/g acceleration due to gravity on Earth. Purpose: To determine the time in seconds of one cycle (the period T) of a simple pendulum that matches the tempo of a song picked by your instructor. Materials: Ring Stand, String, Clamp, 1 Gram Mass Set, Protractor, Meter Stick, Scissors, and a Stopwatch