timer program

Your 'timer program' report has been received. Scroll down through the document to see any comments I might have inserted, and my final comment at the end.

** #$&* Your General Comment **

6/7 1030am

** #$&* Describe what you see on your first 10 clicks **

30 mins

** #$&*Your TIMER data from 20 fast clicks **

It is easy to operate the Timer program. All you have to do is click on the button labeled Click to Time Event.

Click that button about 10 times and describe what you see.

I used the Java Timer I seen 4 boxes as I hit the time button they self populated with 10 times in seconds number 1-10 also in the 2 box was the total elapsed time in the 3 box was the amount of time passed in the last was a tabled list of all information from the first 3 boxes.

#$&*

Now click on Initialize Counter, which will clear all the data from the timer window. Click the mouse as fast as you can until the TIMER window fills up. Be sure you get at least 20 time intervals.

If you miss a click, try again. Keep trying until you get at least 20 intervals without a missed or delayed click.

Copy your data starting in the next line:

1 0.448 0.448

2 0.615 0.167

3 0.768 0.153

4 0.935 0.167

5 1.104 0.169

6 1.287 0.183

7 1.456 0.169

8 1.623 0.167

9 1.792 0.169

10 1.959 0.167

11 2.128 0.169

12 2.287 0.159

13 2.448 0.161

14 2.623 0.175

15 2.792 0.169

16 2.951 0.159

17 3.128 0.177

18 3.295 0.167

19 3.48 0.185

20 3.727 0.247

#$&*

You got at least 20 time intervals. Based on your data what was the average of the first 20 time intervals? Note that you could get this average by averaging the first 20 intervals. My first few intervals were .15625, .15625, .1875, .171875, etc; I could just add up the first 20 intervals and divide by 20 to get the average. However there is an easier and quicker way to get the result, so use the easier way if you can.

Give your result, number only, in the first line, and starting in the second line explain how you got it.

0.448

0.167

0.153

0.167

0.169

0.183

0.169

0.167

0.169

0.167

0.169

0.159

0.161

0.175

0.169

0.159

0.177

0.167

0.185

+ 0.247

3.727/20=.186

#$&*

&#As a quick scan of your data shows, the first interval reported above does not correspond to the interval you are timing. A quick scan of the data shows that this interval is inconsistent with the other intervals you observed.

If you included that data in your analysis, your results will be affected. If you look at the valid intervals, and your calculated mean, you will see that your mean doesn't lie 'in the middle' of your valid intervals. Often, in fact, this error leads to a mean interval length that is greater than any of the valid interval lengths.

As long as your calculations are otherwise correct, I'm not going to ask you to resubmit anything However you should make these comparisons yourself, and do submit a revision if you do have questions. To revise, simply insert your revisions, marking each insertion before and after with #### so I can easily identify it. &#

When I did this activity the first few lines of my data were as follows:

event number clock time time interval

1 11.67188 11.67188

2 11.875 0.203125

3 12.0625 0.1875

4 12.20313 0.140625

5 12.375 0.171875

6 12.54688 0.171875

7 12.73438 0.1875

8 12.92188 0.1875

9 13.10938 0.1875

10 13.28125 0.171875

11 13.4375 0.15625

It looks like the same intervals keep popping up. For example .1875 seconds occurs 5 times out of the first 10 intervals, .171875 seconds occurs three times, and .203125 seconds, .140625 seconds and .15625 seconds each occur once.

A frequency distribution for my time intervals would be as follows:

time interval frequency

,140625 1

.15625 1

.171875 3

.1875 5

.203125 1

What different time intervals did you observe in your first 20 intervals, and how many times did each occur? List below the different time intervals you observed and the number of times each occurred. List from the shortest to the longest interval, and use a comma between the time interval and its frequency. For example my data above would be listed at

.140625, 1

.1565, 1

.171875, 3

.1875, 5

.203125, 1

Your list should be in exactly this format, with no other symbols or characters.

.448, 1

.153, 1

.159, 2

.161, 1

.167, 5

.169, 5

.175, 1

.177, 1

.183, 1

.185, 1

.247, 1

#$&*

You may make any comments or ask any question about the process so far in the box below

#$&*

On the 10 intervals I've shown you, do you really think I managed to get a time of .1875 seconds, accurate to 4 significant figures, on half of the intervals? If you do, I'm grateful for your confidence but I'm just not that good. No human being has that much neurological and muscular control.

So why do you think the TIMER program reported that time so frequently? Why weren't there times like .1830 seconds, or .1769 seconds? Does this mean that the TIMER program is flawed? Does that mean it's useless?

The time was reported so frequently you hit the window to be rounded to that answer. No it is not flawed and it is not useless.

#$&*

Here are a few more lines of data, with an added column showing the difference between each time interval and the next.

clock time time interval difference from one time interval to next

9 13.10938 0.1875 -0.01563

10 13.28125 0.171875 -0.01563

11 13.4375 0.15625 0.03125

12 13.625 0.1875 -0.01563

13 13.79688 0.171875 0.015625

14 13.98438 0.1875 0.015625

15 14.1875 0.203125 -0.03125

16 14.35938 0.171875 -0.01563

17 14.51563 0.15625 0.03125

Take a good look at that last column and tell us what you see in those numbers, and what this tells you about the TIMER program

It is telling you by how much you missed the mark of the interval.

#$&*

Now initialize the TIMER once more, and take a series of 10 relaxed breaths. Every time you start to inhale, hit the TIMER button.

My results for the first 7 complete breaths are as follows:

series of relaxed breaths

event number clock time time interval difference between time interval and next

1 1569.734 1569.734

2 1582.75 13.01563 0.32812

3 1596.094 13.34375 3.90625

4 1613.344 17.25 2.70313

5 1633.297 19.95313 1.35937

6 1654.609 21.3125 4.23438

7 1680.156 25.54688 2.15625

8 1707.859 27.70313

I didn't go on because the time between my breaths kept increasing, and I was afraid if I relaxed any more I might stop breathing altogether. It's going to take either more statistical analysis to determine whether that's a real danger, or a little common sense.

Report your results by just entering your time intervals, one to each line, in the box below. If I was entering my results I would enter

13.01563

13.34375

17.25

19.95313

21.3125

etc.

Enter your results in the same format:

0.894

4.39

9.31

15.142

21.982

28.95

35.03

#$&*

If you have any comments please insert them here

It was hard to do relaxed breathes.

It's hard to relax under pressure. If nothing else, most students are under time pressure during their work.

#$&*

Most likely you did not observe the same exact time interval twice, and if you did it did not happen nearly as often as when you did the fact clicks.

Why do you think this is exactly what we would expect?

The amount of the thousandths of seconds passed would be almost impossible to hit twice.

#$&*

Which of the following statements do you think is the most accurate?

a. The TIMER program is capable of determining the time between two events accurately to within about .1 second.

b. The TIMER program is capable of determining the time between two events accurately to within about .01 second.

c. The TIMER program is capable of determining the time between two events accurately to within about .001 second.

d. The TIMER program is capable of determining the time between two events accurately to within about .0001 second.

Enter your answer and your reasoning below:

B.

The timer I used gave to the thousandths decimal place which means most likely it rounded it from the ten thousandths place. Which means the truest value is in the hundredth’s place.

#$&*

&#Good responses. See my notes and let me know if you have questions. &#