Date: ___________ Section: _______ Name:

____________________________________________________________________________

Power Lab
Lab Sheet

BACKGROUND INFORMATION
James Watt was a British scientist who invented the steam engine. To find out how the power of his
engine compared to that of a horse, Watt measured how fast an average horse could do work. He found
the answer and expressed the amount of the work performed per second as a horsepower. One
horsepower is the equivalent of 746 W.
Work equals force times the distance through which the force acts. Force is expressed in Newtons (N) and
distance is expressed in meters (m). Work is expressed in newton-meters, or the SI unit joules (J).
The rate which work is done is called power. Power equals work divided by time. If work is in joules (J)
and time is in seconds (s), power is expressed in joules/second, or the simplification watts (W). A watt is
the amount of power required to do 1 Joules of work in 1 second, about as much power as you need to lift
an apple over your head in 1 s.
OBJECTIVES
Calculate your work output when
you climb the stairs.
Calculate your power output
when you climb the stairs.
Practice calculating work and
power.

MATERIALS
Scale
Stairs
Stopwatch
Meterstick

SAFTEY
Be careful while walking up
stairs.
Do NOT run on the stairs.
Do NOT misuse materials.

Handle the materials with care.

Time 1 (s)
Time 2 (s)
Time 3 (s)

PROCEDURE
Determine your force.*
1. Measure your mass in kilograms (kg) using a scale. Record you mass in the data table.
2. Convert your mass to a force using Newtons 2nd Law (F=ma). Multiply your mass by the acceleration
due to gravity, or multiply your mass by 9.8 m/s2. Record your force.
*Your weight is the force used to calculate power because you are lifting yourself up the stairs against the
force of gravity.
[Space for calculations here]
Mass (kg)
Force (N)*

Measure the height of the stairs in meters (m).

3. Measure the height of one step in meters. Record the height.
4. Determine the number
climbing (at least 5 but
Height of one step (m)
Multiply the number of
by the height of one
Number of steps
height of the stairway.
the stairs.
Total height of stairs
[Space for calculations
(m)

of steps you will be

no more than 10).
steps you will be climbing
step to get the total
Record the total height of
here]

Determine your stair-climbing time in seconds(s).**

5. With a partner, use the stopwatch to time how long its takes you to walk quickly up the stairs. Record
the time as accurately as possible. Repeat 2 more times. CAUTION: Be careful. If you are feeling
overly exerted, do not continue.
6. Switch roles and repeat #3.
**This is the only part of the lab you NEED to work with a partner for; you may continue to work
together, or work independently.
OBSERVATIONS
1. Were the three climbing times roughly the same, or did they vary significantly?

2. Did you feel as if you exerted the same amount of effort on each climb? Explain.

ANALYSIS
Calculate your work
each of the three
to not confuse the
watts, W, with the
1. To calculate your
force times
[Space for calculations

Work (J)

Power (W)

Climb 1
Climb 2
Climb 3

and you power for

climbs. (Be careful
abbreviation for
symbol for work, W.)
work done, multiply
distance.
here]

2. To calculate your power in watts, divide the work done in joules by the time in seconds that it took you
to climb the stairs.
[Space for calculations here]

3. Was the amount of work you did for each trial the same? Explain using evidence.

4. Was the amount of power you expended the same for each trial? Explain using evidence.
5. If you had climbed more slowly, how would the work have been affected? How would the power
output have been affected? Explain your answer.

6. Compare your power output with the output of a horse by calculating your horsepower. To calculate
your horsepower, divide your power by 746. Do you think you could keep up that power level for
hours, like horses do?

Conclusions:
1) How does your power output in climbing the stairs compare to the power output of a 100-watt light
bulb? If your power could have been harnessed and the energy converted to electricity, how many
100-watt bulbs could you have kept burning during your climb?

2) How did you calculate the amount of work done? How did you calculate the amount of power exerted?

3) In your own words, explain the difference between work and power?

4) Imagine two people climbed to the roof of a building, one of them old and one young. The old person
walked up a gentle ramp. The young person climbed up a steep spiral staircase. Which person did
more work? Explain.