Example setup for quick lesson demo.Ĭopyright © 2007 Engineering K-PhD Program, Pratt School of Engineering, Duke University Once the cars are at the top of that hill, they are released from the chain and coast through the rest of the track, which is where the name roller coaster comes from.įigure 1. That chain hooks to the bottom of the cars and pulls them to the top of that first hill, which is always the highest point on a roller coaster. You might have even have felt it "catch" to the cars.
Do any of you remember riding a roller coaster that started out with a big hill? If you looked closely at the roller coaster track (on which the cars move), you would see in the middle of the track on that first hill, a chain. While that is true of a few roller coasters, most use gravity to move the cars along the track. Point out some of the unique features of each coaster, such as hills and loops, that relate to the lesson.)ĭoes anyone know how roller coasters work? You might think that the roller coaster cars have engines inside them that push them along the track like automobiles. (Listen to a few students describe their favorite roller coasters. Before we start talking about physics, though, I'd like you to share some of your experiences with roller coasters. Today's lesson is all about roller coasters and the science and engineering behind them. An understanding of Newton's second law of motion and basic motion concepts such as position, velocity and acceleration. International Technology and Engineering Educators Association - TechnologyĪn understanding of forces, particularly gravity and friction, as well as some familiarity with kinetic and potential energy. energy in fields, thermal energy, energy of motion). When the motion energy of an object changes, there is inevitably some other change in energy at the same time.Įnergy may take different forms (e.g. Science knowledge is based upon logical and conceptual connections between evidence and explanations.Īlignment agreement: Thanks for your feedback! This lesson focuses on the following Three Dimensional Learning aspects of NGSS: Identify points in a roller coaster track where a car accelerates and decelerates.Ĭonstruct, use, and present arguments to support the claim that when the kinetic energy of an object changes, energy is transferred to or from the object.Ĭlick to view other curriculum aligned to this Performance Expectation.Identify points in a roller coaster track where a car experiences more or less than 1 g-force.Identify points in a roller coaster track at which a car has maximum kinetic energy and maximum potential energy.Use the principle of conservation of energy to explain the layout of roller coasters.Discuss the effects of gravity and friction in the context of their roller coaster designs.
Explain in physics terms how a roller coaster works.Explain why it is important for engineers to know how roller coasters work.After the lesson, students should be able to analyze the motion of any existing gravity-driven coaster and design the basics of their own model roller coasters.Īfter this activity, students should be able to:
They learn about the possibilities and limitations of roller coasters within the context of energy conservation, frictional losses and other physical principles. Students explore the most basic physical principles of roller coasters, which are crucial to the initial design process for engineers who create roller coasters. Copyright © Stock.XCHNG (free stock photo)
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