Hooke's Law Simulation — README

An interactive physics lab simulation for Hooke's Law. Students hang masses from a virtual spring, record data, graph Force vs. Stretch, and discover the spring constant — mirroring the hands-on lab experience.

🔗 Live Demo

View on GitHub Pages

Two Modes

🔬 Lab Mode (default)

A virtual version of the Hooke's Law lab. Students:

1. Add masses in 50 g increments to a vertical spring
2. Observe the spring stretch to equilibrium (with settling animation)
3. Click "Record Data Point" to capture each trial
4. Build a Force vs. Stretch graph point-by-point
5. Toggle a best-fit line to discover the slope = spring constant k

Features:

• Ring stand, vertical spring, ruler, and colorful stacking masses
• Data table (8 trials) matching the lab worksheet format
• Live Force vs. Stretch scatter plot with labeled data points
• Best-fit line toggle showing slope (k) in N/m
• 🔒 Teacher Mode: hidden spring constant (randomized on load), adjustable via slider

🎮 Free Play Mode

An interactive Simple Harmonic Motion simulation. Students explore:

• Adjustable spring constant, mass, displacement, and damping
• Real-time displacement and velocity graphs
• Energy distribution bar (PE ↔ KE)
• Force arrows and position trails

Technologies

• HTML5 Canvas for rendering
• Vanilla JavaScript (no dependencies)
• CSS3 for responsive layout
• MathJax for equation rendering

Lab Alignment

This simulation is designed to complement the Hooke's Law Lab worksheet:

• Part 1: Predictions (Guided Exploration tab)
• Part 2: Equipment (virtual ring stand, masses, ruler)
• Part 3: Procedure (add mass → record → repeat)
• Part 4: Analysis (graph, best-fit line, slope)
• Part 5: Model building (F = kx discovery)

Usage

Open index.html in any modern browser, or visit the GitHub Pages link above.

© 2026 Vladimir Lopez | The Thinking Experiment