A student carries out an experiment to investigate the relationship between the accelerating force and the acceleration of a dynamics cart (Newton's second law).
This is their method:
- Release the cart from the same starting position each time.
- Measure the acceleration using a motion sensor connected to a computer.
- Vary the accelerating force by moving masses from the top of the cart to the hanging weight hanger.
The student obtains the following results:
| Force (N)(\text{N})(N) | Acceleration (m/s2)(\text{m/s}^2)(m/s2) |
|---|---|
| 1.5 | 0.50 |
| 3.0 | 1.15 |
| 6.0 | 2.00 |
Describe the trend shown by the student's results and suggest how the student could improve their method to obtain more accurate and precise results.