PART I: Collect Experimental Data
• Bend the provided 30 paper clips until they fail.
o Follow the instructions presented in class on how to bend the paperclips.
• Record the number of bends until failure for all 30 clips
• Determine the frequency of failure from 1 to 20 bends
o If the paperclip lasts more than 20 bends, note their frequency in the "20+ bends" row, and mention the frequency of this result in your paper.
• Record any additional observations about the paperclips that might be useful.
PART II: Organizing the Data
Create:
1. A table and histogram (using EXCEL) from your team's data (30 paperclips).
2. A table and histogram (using EXCEL) from the data collected from the entire class (300 paperclips).
3. A table and histogram (using EXCEL) from the data collected from all 8 sections of EGR 186 (2400 paperclips).
Be sure your graphs are appropriately scaled. i.e., don't compare the # of bends of a group (30 paperclips) to the entire class (300 paperclips). If you want to compare 30 paperclips to 300, convert to %.
PART III: Presenting the Experiment
Write a report to explain the experiment, show the data collected, and discuss the results.
1. Include a cover page with appropriate information.
2. The report must contain a 1) problem statement, 2) methods section, 3) results section, and 4) conclusion (make a conclusion by writing a short paragraph to answer the provided questions).
a. Conclusion: discuss your observations regarding the frequencies of paperclip failure.
i. Is there a distinct trend or trends?
ii. Discuss why such a result may have occurred (re-examine the paperclips for any possible clues to the trends observed).