February 28, 2006
Speed Trap
The students built a structure consisting of a green light and a red light mounted to a beam. This beam
spanned the road.
Light sensors were used to measure the time it took for a car to travel a certain distance. This time was
compared to a given allowable time (3 seconds) that the car had to stay under. If the car took more than
3 seconds, it was not speeding and the green light activated.
However, if the time it took was less than 3 seconds, the car was speeding. In this scenario, the red light
shone signifying the car was speeding and the driver would receive a ticket. This lesson was helpful in
teaching students about rates (speed in particular) and stressing the need to obey traffic laws.
