An experiment to acquaint the student to the concepts of work and power. This is done by weighing students, then timing them as they run or walk up a flight of stairs. The student will measure the work they do against gravity. Since we will neglect friction, gravity will provide a conservative force , one in which the path doesn t matter, only the endpoints of motion. Thus, the distance is the vertical height from bottom to top, not the length of the path traveled.
Power is the time rate of doing work.
The faster a fixed amount of work is done, the more power there is. The faster the student goes up the stairs, the more power the student must provide to move their mass. Begin by taking the student s weight. This should include anything that they will carry with them up the steps, including jackets, books, bookbags, etc. Step height should be measured carefully.