The Physics of Roller Coasters
The roller coaster has its beginnings in Russia where during the 1600's. People crafted sleds out of wood and built hills made of ice blocks. The hills had sand at the bottom to help slow down the sleds so they would not crash when they reached the bottom of the hill.1 Over time, the roller coaster has become more complex. They now are taller, faster
and are designed out of different materials like wood and steel. Although roller coasters are fun and exciting, the questions, what allows them to twist and turn, go up and down hills at a fairly good speed? Why do they not fall off of the track when it goes through a loop? The answer to these questions and others about roller coasters lies in the application of basic physics principals. These principals include potential and kinetic energy, gravity, velocity, projectile motion, centripetal acceleration, friction, and inertia.
The basic design of a roller coaster consists of a train like coaster that starts out at the bottom of the tallest hill of the ride. The train is then pulled up the hill and is pulled to the top of the hill. As the train is pulled from the bottom of the hill to the top of it, the trains' potential energy is converted onto kinetic energy. Potential energy is defined as "the energy of an object at a height h above some zero level as equal to the work done by the force of gravity"2 (139). Kinetic energy is the energy of "an object . . . because of its motion"2 (132). As the distance between the ground and the train of cars increases, the potential energy of the train increases as well.
This increase in potential energy increases the amount of kinetic energy that can be released in the system therefore causes the system to be ...
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... depleted causing the train to come to a stop.
So, as you can see, roller coasters are an excellent example of the use of forces energy in a system and how they interact with one another to cause motion and to stop motion of objects. If these forces were not present, then we would have a very difficult time doing anything because there would be no way to start motion and if there was motion it would be very difficult to stop it.
Works Cited
1. Annenberg/CPB. “Roller Coaster History” Amusement Park Physics: What are the forces behind the fun?. Learner.org http://www.learner.org/exhibits/parkphysics/coaster2.html. . April 29, 2003.
2. Kirkpatrick, Larry D. and Gerald F. Wheeler. Physics: A World View. ed. 4. Harcourt College Publishers. Fort Worth. 2001.
3. Britannica Online. “Roller Coaster Physics. http://search.eb.com/coasters/physics/. May 1, 2003.
Kirkpatrick, Larry D. and Gerald F. Wheeler. Physics: A World View. Fourth Edition. Harcourt College Publishers: Orlando, Florida, 2001.
In this experiment we positioned a marble ball on a wooden roller coaster positioned on a physics stand in the sixth hole. Throughout the experiment, we used an electronic timer to record the time of the marble where it passed through the light beam of its clamp. We positioned the clamp at a certain point on the roller coaster and measured the distance from the marble to the clamp; the height of the clamp; and finally the time the ball traveled through the clamp. After we recorded these different figures we calculated the speed of the marble from the given distance traveled and the time. We repeated the step 14 times, then proceeded to graph the speed and the height. Next, we took the measurements of position of the clamp, height, and speed and calculated the potential energy, the kinetic energy, and the total energy. Total energy calculated as mentioned before. Potential energy is taking the mass (m) which is 28.1g times gravity (g) which is 9.8 m/s2 times the height. Kinetic energy is one-half times the mass (m) times velocity (v2). Finally we graphed the calculated kinetic, potential, and total energies of this experiment.
Aristotle, R. P. Hardie, and R. K. Gaye. Physics. Adelaide: The University of Adelaide Library, 2000. Print.
Bernstein, Jeremy, Paul M. Fishbane, and Stephen Gasiorwocz. Modern Physics. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. 2000
The second one is Gold Striker, one of the favorite’s roller coaster for kids. This roller coaster is tallest and fastest wooden in Northern California; Gold Striker stands 108.2 Feet High and travels 53.7 MPH (Great America). So many people want to try Gold Striker because of its sheer height, not to mention the fact that the ride spanned almost the entire park. To go that fast for so long seemed so thrilling to people. It's been by far the most fun amusement park ride people have ever been on. The last one is Superman roller coaster, one of the favorite’s roller coaster for kids and adults. It over-sized strength, mega speed, and pretty much at the top of his class when it comes to flying (Six Flags). where as most rides have you buckled to seat and have you rigidly set in place, the Superman has you riding with your hands out front and your feet behind you, like a superhero flying through the air. People are really enjoying riding the Superman. On a lot of roller coasters, it seems like your eyes spend the majority of the time looking at the seats in front of you. On the Superman, you're facing toward the ground, away from the track and all the other parts of the
Another science that relates to potential energy is kinetic energy. Kinetic energy is the energy something has because an object is moving. Dropping a soccer ball converts the potential energy to kinetic energy. In all, energy makes things happen which is why energy can also be called the
Roller coasters come in all sizes and configurations. Roller coasters are designed to be intense machines that get the riders’ adrenaline pumping. Ever since my first roller coaster ride, I knew I was hooked. I cannot get enough of the thrilling sensation caused by these works of engineering. When people board these rides, they put their faith in the engineers who designed the rides and the people who maintain and operate the rides. In this paper, I will bring to your attention a specific instance when the operation of one of these coasters came into question and led to a very tragic incident. From this, I will look into the events leading up to the incident and evaluate the decisions made by the people involved.
Potatoes have become a staple to the diet of humans.They have become so popular since they come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and tastes. They are also cheap and easy to grow, and they taste delicious! Potatoes have changed the course of history in several ways. Who knew that potatoes, just a starchy vegetable, could have helped shape the world in so many ways. First, the Irish Potato Famine killed a million people and caused another million to move out of Ireland. Second, soldiers in the United States army were able to eat potatoes throughout the war. Third, they prevented a famine from occurring in England after there was not a sufficient amount of crops going to sustain the country's cries for food. Many people wonder if potatoes have
Kirkpatrick, Larry, and Gerald F. Wheeler. Physics: A World View. 4th ed. Orlando: Harcourt College Publishers, 2001.
water in the potato, then the water will go out of the potato and into
Fowler, Michael. “Modern Physics.” Lecture. Mass and Energy. 1 Mar. 2008. Web. 13 Oct. 2013.
all be cut out of the potato using a cork borer and will all be cut to
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