Demonstrations

Simple Pendulum

Code Number :	3A10.10
Disclaimer:	Reprinted by permission of Dick Berg, University of Maryland, for use on this website. The demonstrations contained and referenced herein are listed for the purposes of cataloging and describing physics demonstrations which should be conducted only under the direction of a trained instructional support professional or physicist. These demonstrations are not presented for the purpose of being conducted by persons unconnected to this Facility and/or persons not consulting with or being supervised by the recognized instructional support professional or physicist and his/her staff. The University is responsible only for those demonstrations carried out using its own equipment using established safety and scheduling policies, and bears no responsibility for those choosing to use this source material for their own purposes. All demonstrations described and contained herein are public domain, and can also be found in reference materials in libraries, bookstores, and electronic sources. Further information regarding legal liability in use of demonstrations and labs will be found on the web site Injuries in School/College Laboratories in USA. The University of Iowa Disclaimers: University of Iowa Disclaimer All Rights Reserved..
Condition :	Excellent
Principle :	Potential to Kinetic Energy, Simple Harmonic Motion
Area of Study :	Acoustics
Equipment :	Pendulum bobs on strings.
Procedure :	Set the pendulum bob in oscillatory motion.

References

Julio V. Santos-Benito and Albert Gras-Marti, "Ubiquitous Drawing Errors for the Simple Pendulum", TPT, Vol. 43, # 7, Oct. 2005, p. 466.

Gerald E. Hite, "Approximations for the Period of a Simple Pendulum", TPT, Vol. 43, # 3, May 2005, p. 290 - 292.

Keith Clay, "The Pendulum, Gravity, and That Number "9.8", TPT, Vol. 42, # 1, Jan. 2004, p. 14.

Art Stinner, Don Metz, "Pursuing the Ubiquitous Pendulum," TPT, Vol. 41, # 1, p. 25, Jan. 2003.

L. Edward Millet, "The Large-Angle Pendulum Period," TPT, Vol. 41, # 3, p. 162, March 2003.

Richard B. Kidd and Stuart L. Fogg, "A Simple Formula for the Large-Angle Pendulum Period," TPT, Vol. 40, # 2, p. 81, Feb. 2002.

Ben Szapiro, "Simple-Pendulum Lab with a Twist," TPT, Vol. 40, # 3, p. 158, March 2002.

James O'Connell, "Tension in a Pendulum String", TPT, Vol. 40, # 1, Jan. 2002, p. 24.

Herman Erlichson, "A Proposition Well Known to Geometers", TPT, Vol. 39, # 3, Mar. 2001, p. 152.

R. Keith Bardin, "A Proposition Well Known to Geometers", TPT, Vol. 39, # 6, Sept. 2001, p. 324.

Jose M. Vaquero, "An Old Apparatus for Physics Teaching: Escriche's Pendulum", TPT, Vol. 38, # 7, Oct. 2000, p. 424.

David E. Holzwarth, "Pendulum Period Versus Hanging-Spring Period," TPT, Vol. 38, # 1, p. 47, Jan. 2000.

Herman Erlichson, "Galileo's Pendulum," TPT, p. 478, Vol. 37, # 8, Nov. 1999.

M.I. Molina, "Simple Linearizations of the Simple Pendulum for Any Amplitude", TPT, Vol. 35, # 8, Nov. 1997, p. 489.

David P. Jackson, "Rendering the Not-So-Simple Pendulum Experimentally Accessible," TPT, Vol. 34, # 2, p. 86 - 89, Feb. 1996.

David L. Herrick, "Constant-Magnitude Acceleration on a Curved Path", TPT, Vol. 34, # 5, May 1996, p. 306.

Cindy Schwarz, "The Not-So-Simple Pendulum," TPT, Vol. 33, # 4, p. 225, April 1995.

Raymond E. Benenson, "Weighing an Accelerating Kilogram-Mass with a Spring Scale", TPT, Vol. 32, # 5, May 1994, p. 284.

T. F. Zheng, M. Mears, D. Hall, and D. Pushkin, S. Jorgensen, K. R. Banks, R. J. Hyatt, And Y. M. Shleyzer, "Teaching the Nonlinear Pendulum", TPT, Vol. 32, # 4, Apr. 1994, p. 248.

Jason Foat and Peter Siegel, "Transcendental Measurementation", TPT, Vol. 32, # 4, Apr. 1994, p. 231.

Vincent Santarelli, Joyce Carolla, and Michael Ferner, "A New Look at the Simple Pendulum", TPT, Vol. 31, # 4, Apr. 1993, p. 236.

Donald G. Bruns, "Synchronized Swinging," TPT, Vol. 26, # 4, p. 220, (April 1988).

Gaylord T. Hageseth, "The Liquid Pendulum", TPT, Vol. 25, # 7, Oct. 1987, p. 427.

Robert Kern Curtis, "The Simple Pendulum Experiment", Vol. 19, # 1, Jan. 1981, p. 36.

Mario Iona, "Due to Damping or Amplitude?", TPT, Vol. 19, # 5, May 1981, p. 353.

E. Scott Barr, "p˛ ť g", TPT, Vol. 19, # 7, Oct. 1981, p. 448.

Anthony Pitucco, "An Approximation of a Simple Pendulum", TPT, Vol. 18, # 9, Dec. 1980, p. 666.

Leung Chinn, "Demonstration of the Conservation of Mechanical Energy", TPT, Vol. 17, # 6, Sept. 1979, p. 385.

Gordon R. Rode, "How Could We?", TPT, Vol. 17, # 8, Nov. 1979, p. 496.

G. Bergamasco, E. Colombo, "Displaying Pendulum Motion on the CRO", TPT, Vol. 17, # 1, Jan. 1979, p. 58.

Arnold B. Arons, "How Long is a Simple Pendulum?", TPT, Vol. 15, # 5, May 1977, p. 300.

Mario Iona, "Simple or Physical Pendulum", TPT, Vol. 15, # 8, Nov. 1977, p. 453.

A. B. Arons, "The Author Replies", TPT, Vol. 15, # 8, Nov. 1977, p. 509.

Ian G. Ellis, "Anharmonic Motion Illustrator", TPT, Vol. 13, # 6, Sept. 1975, p. 367.

F. M. S. Lima, P. Arun, "An Accurate Formula for the Period of a Simple Pendulum Oscillating Beyond the Small Angle Regime", AJP, Vol. 74, # 10, Oct. 2006, p. 892.

D.L. Livesey, "The Precession of Simple Pendulum Orbits," AJP, 55, (7), July 1987.

Margaret Stautberg Greenwood, "Using Videotapes to Study Underdamped Motion of a Pendulum: A Laboratory Project," AJP, 55, (7), July 1987.

Robert A. Nelson and M.G. Olsson, "The Pendulum - Rich Physics from a Simple System," AJP, 54, (2), Feb. 1986.

W.P. Ganley, "Simple Pendulum Approximation," AJP, 53, (1), Jan. 1985.

M. G. Olsson, "The Precessing Spherical Pendulum", AJP, Vol. 46, (11), Nov. 1978, p. 1118.

C. G. Montgomery, "Pendulum on a Massive Cord", AJP, Vol. 46, (4), Apr. 1978, p. 411.

Donald E. Hall and Michael J. Shea, "Large-Amplitude Pendulum Experiment: Another Approach", AJP, Vol. 45, # 4, Apr. 1977, p. 355.

Saul T. Epstein and M. G. Olsson, "Comment on "Effect of the Mass of the Cord on the Period of a Simple Pendulum", AJP, Vol. 45, # 7, July 1977, p. 671.

Frank S. Crawford, "Damping of a Simple Pendulum", AJP, Vol. 43, # 3, Mar. 1975, p. 276.

B. J. Miller, "More Realistic Treatment of the Simple Pendulum without Difficult Mathematics", AJP, Vol. 42, #4, Apr. 1974, p. 298.

M-884: "Simple Pendulum," DICK and RAE Physics Demo Notebook.

M-896: "Pendulum Length vs. Period," DICK and RAE Physics Demo Notebook.

C.L. Stong, "Little Pendulums That Oscillate Like Big Ones," The Amateur Scientist, (April, 1967).

Ron Hipschman, "Pendulum Table," Exploratorium Cookbook III, p. 188.1 - 188.18.

"Pendulums -- Length vs. Period," Physics From the Junk Drawer, 3rd Edition, The Science House, North Carolina State University, p. 8.

Mail Questions and Comments to: Dale Stille