A student is investigating gravity and falling objects. She drops three balls and times how long it takes each ball to hit the ground. What is the most likely source of error?

Question

A student is investigating gravity and falling objects. She drops three balls and times how long it takes each ball to hit the ground. What is the most likely source of error?

(1 point)
• She did not measure the mass after the balls hit the ground.
• She dropped the balls from different heights.
• She did not measure the circumference of the balls.
• She used balls that are different sizes.

Answer 1

The most likely source of error is that she dropped the balls from different heights. This would affect the time it takes for each ball to hit the ground as they would be starting from different initial velocities. To accurately measure the effect of gravity on falling objects, all objects should be dropped from the same height.