1. Are the objective and introduction written in an engaging way? Yes No     If 'No' please explain. characters left 2. Is the difficulty level accurate? Yes No     If 'No' please explain. characters left 3. Were the materials easily obtained? Yes No     If 'No' please explain. characters left 4. Was the procedure clear? Yes No      If 'No' please explain. characters left 5. Were all safety measures included? Yes No      If 'No' please explain. characters left 6. Did you obtain clear, unambiguous results? Yes No     If 'No' please explain. characters left 7. How much time did you spend on the project? Choose One... A day or less Several days About one week A couple weeks Several weeks to months 8. How much did the project cost? Choose One... Less than $20 $20 - $50 $50 - $100 $100 - $150 $150+ Optional:  Do you have any suggestions to improve this project? characters left Optional:  Attach a picture of your project (JPG, JPEG, GIF, PNG only) Optional:  Caption for picture characters left Thank you for your feedback! * Note: This is an abbreviated project idea, without notes to start your background research or a procedure for how to do the experiment. You can identify abbreviated project ideas by the asterisk at the end of the title. If you want a project idea with full instructions, please pick one without an asterisk. Abstract Tennis racquets, baseball bats and golf clubs all vibrate when they hit the ball. You can often feel it in your hands, particularly if you "mis-hit" the ball. You can find the point(s) on your racquet, bat or club—called the "sweet spot"— that minimize unwanted vibrations. Low-tech method: hang the racquet or bat straight up and down with a string from its handle. Lightly hold the handle with your thumb and forefinger and have a helper sharply tap the bat, strings or club face with a ball at regular increments along the length. You'll feel a minimum in the vibration at the "sweet spot" of the bat, racquet or club. High-tech method: loosely tape a card to the handle so that it will vibrate when the racquet, bat or club is tapped (Brody, 1987, 33). If you want to go all out, you can measure the vibration of the card by monitoring light reflecting off the card with a photodiode and analog-to-digital converter. Several projects possible: longest hit from where? best accuracy from where? comparing different racquets for comfort? (Both Brody et al., 2002, and Brody, 1987, have extensive sections on the vibration of racquets; Barr, 1990, 37–39, has a short treatment of vibration in baseball bats.) Bibliography Barr, G., 1990. Sports Science for Young People. New York, NY: Dover Publications. Brody, H., 1987. Tennis Science for Tennis Players. Philadelphia, PA: The University of Pennsylvania Press. Brody, H. et al., 2002 The Physics and Technology of Tennis. Solana Beach, CA: Racquet Tech Publishing. Shop for Supplies at Science Buddies Online Store Science Buddies has compiled some suggestions for harder to find items in our Amazon store. The store does not include every item for every project, but it does include items that we feel work for the projects on our website. If you have comments or would like us to add items to the store, please contact us at scibuddy@sciencebuddies.org. Variations For more science project ideas in this area of science, see Sports Science Project Ideas. Last edit date: 2006-12-26 14:06:34

I Did This Project! Tell us about your experience with this science project. What was the most important thing you learned? characters left What problems did you encounter? (Enter "none" if you had none.) characters left Can you suggest any improvements or ideas? (Enter "no" if you have none.) characters left How do you rate this project? Poor OK Good Very Good Excellent Optional:  Attach a picture of your project (JPG, JPEG, GIF, PNG only) Optional:  Caption for picture characters left Thank you for your feedback! Related Links Science Fair Project Guide Project Summary Difficulty  5  –  8  Time required Average (about one week) Share this Project Idea! Donate to Science Buddies Internet Safety Tips Get educated about online safety with help from Symantec. symantec.com/norton/familyresources Motorola Solutions Foundation sponsors Summer Science Camp Resource Summer Science Camp Resource

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