Nicholas Powell 5th Period Science Mr.Gorden 11/26/14 Pencil Crossbow Test! Nicholas Powell 5th Period Science Mr.Gorden 11/26/14

Which Will Shoot Farther In A Pencil Crossbow A Pencil Or Pen?

Reason I picked this I picked this because I have always been fascinated with The Walking Dead. I love Daryl’s crossbow, so I decided to see which one would be more useful in a pencil crossbow; a pen or pencil. Another reason is I like to go hunting and look at crossbows.

Variables Independent: Pen and pencil Dependent: The length of how far the pen and pencil travels Constants Same size, weight and bow

Hypothesis If the pen is more stable, I think the pen will shoot farther than the pencil

Materials Tape Measure Pencil Pen Tape Rubberband

Procedures Make the crossbow Make sure the pencil is the same size as the pen Place it in the bow Pull it back the same length Shoot it Measure how far it goes Clean up Repeat steps 1-7 with a pen

Data

Conclusion The question I asked was if a pen could shoot further than a pencil in a pencil crossbow. For the experiment I had a pen and a pencil measured in distance by a tape measure and shot both of them. I tested this twice and came to the conclusion that a pen went 40.5 feet and a pencil went 38.7 feet. I found that the pen went further so therefore my hypothesis was proven correct in this case. If I was to re-create this experiment I would use a real crossbow.