1 DATA VISUALIZATION APPLICATIONS IN HIGH SCHOOL PHYSICS Caleb Goodwin Electrical and Computer Engineering The University of Memphis Spring Semester 2005 2-D Collisions Abstract - The purpose of this project is to stimulate high school students’ interest in the sciences using VTK. The program simulates 2-D collisions among balls of equal mass. The topic was chosen since the conservation of momentum is an integral part of physics and ball collisions are a classic high school physics problem. The program simulates two scenarios for 2-D elastic collisions: collision involving a stationary ball and collision involving two moving balls. The simulation is built upon the physics formulas that are used in a standard high school classroom. The parameters for the balls may be changed to provide an interactive and educational experience that will allow the instructor to discuss and demonstrate the various scenarios in the classroom. 1.0 Introduction The United States is on the verge of crisis. The United States is facing a large decline in the number of students who are pursuing careers in the field of science. The shortage in scientists is a critical threat to the security and stability of the United States. The shortage in scientists is also occurring at a time when the demand is growing. Effort is being made across college campuses nation wide to encourage undergraduate students to pursue graduate degrees. Effort is also being made to spark interest in students at the high school level. This project is part of this effort. The program developed for the final project simulates the classic high school physics topic of ball collisions. The goal of the project is to provide an interactive simulation that is both educational and entertaining. The program demonstrates the conservation of momentum by using two scenarios: collision involving one stationary ball and collision involving two moving balls. 1.1 Project Background The conservation of momentum is one of the most important physics laws. The conservation of momentum states that the momentum between two colliding objects in a closed system will remain constant. The momentum lost by object 1 is equal to the momentum gained by object 2. I chose to demonstrate this law using ball collisions. The two scenarios used in the program demonstrate the conservation of momentum. The first scenario involves the collision between a moving ball and a stationary ball. The conservation of momentum is most easily seen in this scenario when the collision occurs at an angle of 0 degrees. When the collision occurs at 0 degrees it is apparent that momentum has been conserved since ball 2 moves forward at the exact velocity of the