Question

1) Explain what will happen if the spring mass system was allowed to oscillate in water?
2) What factors should be taken into account for a real study of a mass-spring oscillatory system?

Answer 1

1). In case of spring mass system placed in water, it's amplitude of oscillations changes where as time period and frequency remains the same.

Amplitude, y = Mg'/K.

2). Unlike simple pendulum, time period of spring mass system doesn't depend on acceleration due to gravity. But it depends only on mass connected to the spring and spring constant of the spring.

But when accounted for amplitude of oscillations, surrounding medium do Plays the role. It depends on the force of buoyancy due to the media on the mass.