dougwills

Some general comments, thoughts and ideas.First, great job. I love educational environments that allow for hands on, somewhat "outside the box" thinking. I think it better stimulates the students minds when they get involved with the project.Things to measure or be potentially be concerned about:Response time of your solar cellReflections off of the dropped itemMaybe painting the inside of the tube in a light absorbing colorAs mentioned above, maybe using a laser pointer to a smaller sensorKnowing the response time of that sensorBreeze or other factors impacting the dropped item (putting the whole thing in a enclosure, for instance, to reduce unnecessary influences)Consistency of vertical position of the object during the drop (a ball has rounded edges. moving it left or right...

Some general comments, thoughts and ideas.First, great job. I love educational environments that allow for hands on, somewhat "outside the box" thinking. I think it better stimulates the students minds when they get involved with the project.Things to measure or be potentially be concerned about:Response time of your solar cellReflections off of the dropped itemMaybe painting the inside of the tube in a light absorbing colorAs mentioned above, maybe using a laser pointer to a smaller sensorKnowing the response time of that sensorBreeze or other factors impacting the dropped item (putting the whole thing in a enclosure, for instance, to reduce unnecessary influences)Consistency of vertical position of the object during the drop (a ball has rounded edges. moving it left or right of dead center during the drop can dramatically reduce the time that the light is blocked throwing off the results)In any case, a wonderful project that is easy to replicate and inexpensive to execute. Thanks! I have a group kids that I will try this out on and see what they have to add to the conversation. I wonder if there is a way to tie this into astronomy measuring a lunar eclipse?