Reaction Time Required Practical

Question 1

What is the practical for a reaction time experiment

Answer 1

• Work with a partner and use your weaker hand for this experiment
• Person A should hold out their hand leaving a gap between their thumb and their finger
• Person B holds the ruler with the zero at the top of Person A’s thumb
• Person B should drop the ruler without telling Person A and they must catch it
• The measurement level with Person A’s thumb should be recorded and a suitable results table should be planned then the experiment should be repeated 5 times
• Swap places and record for another five turns

Question 2

What is the dependent variable in this reaction

Answer 2

The dependent variable in this reaction is the reaction time of the person

Question 3

What is the independent variable

Answer 3

The independent variable is the person who is doing the ruler drop test

Question 4

What are the control variables for this experiment

Answer 4

• Same ruler each time
• Same height that the ruler is dropped from
• Use of the same hand when dropping the ruler

Question 5

How can reaction times be better measured

Answer 5

Reaction times can be better measured using a computer program as there is a higher resolution and students can cheat on the ruler drop test