2/26 PotU Honors: Physics Photo Project

Spring 3rd quarter honors project

Honors students will need to take a photo of a physics phenomena and describe the physics principles demonstrated by the photo.

Due date

Photos and essays must be submitted electronically to your teacher by 11:59pm, Wednesday March 11th.

Grading

Emphasis is on the composition of your photo and the accuracy of your physics explanation. 60% of your grade will be based on how well your photo captures a physics phenomena, and 40% of your grade will based on the quality and accuracy of your essay.

Guidelines

Photos

Sample natural photo

There are two categories of photos. Your can decide which category you enter.

(1) Natural photos are those that involve everyday situations that may demonstrate a variety of physics concepts.

(2) Contrived photos are those that are set up to show a particular physics concept or related set of concepts.

Sample contrived photo

You can see past year’s top national photos here.

Original photos may be cropped for better composition (as long as the final product is still an 8” x 10” or 8½” x 11” print). Minimal manipulation of digital images with the intention of accurately rendering the subject is acceptable e.g.: small adjustments to brightness, color, color balance and/or sharpness, is acceptable. This is not a contest to see how well you can manipulate photos; emphasis is on the composition of your photo and the accuracy of your physics explanation.

All photos must be taken with a digital camera, and the original image must be emailed to your teacher. In order to avoid plagiarism, you must also submit an additional photo ‘selfie’ showing you in the photo (take this right before or after you take your contest photo).

Essay Description

Each photo must include a brief essay of 250 words or less describing the physics in the photo.

Essays will be submitted to TurnItIn.com to check for plagiarism.

  • turnitin.com (log in with your existing school account: See me for help if you have trouble loging in)
  • Class ID: 24169038
  • Enrollment key: HonorsS2

National Competition

The top 15 student photos will be entered in the American Association of Physics Teachers National Photo Contest (we can only submit 15 per school).

Of the 15 selected, 10 photos/essays will be chosen by teachers, and 5 will be through a student vote.

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