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.
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
The Conservation of Energy states that energy is always constant. If potential energy increases then kinetic energy decreases and vice versa.
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
Aristotle, R. P. Hardie, and R. K. Gaye. Physics. Adelaide: The University of Adelaide Library, 2000. Print.
Kirkpatrick, Larry D. and Gerald F. Wheeler. Physics: A World View. Fourth Edition. Harcourt College Publishers: Orlando, Florida, 2001.
Bernstein, Jeremy, Paul M. Fishbane, and Stephen Gasiorwocz. Modern Physics. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. 2000
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.
To understand the issues surrounding the manufacture and processing of potato chips, one must first have a basic understand of how they are made. Potato chips start out as most people would imagine, as potatoes. The raw potatoes are grown on farms, and shipped by truck or by rail to the processing facility. Once they arrive at the facility, the potatoes are sent to the peeler—“a long cylinder with rollers that revolve around and around stripping the potato of its skin” (How Potato Chips Are Made). The potatoes then exit the peeler where they are run past human inspectors that will look for bad potatoes and remove them. The potatoes then continue into a slicer where they pass one by one through the machine being sliced into wafers 1/20th of an inch thick (How Potato Chips Are Made). The thin slices then continue along to the fryer. The fryer is a shallow trough filled with oil flowing from one side to the other; it is the current that pushes the frying slices to the other side. As the chips exit the fryer they are salted and inspected again. The chips are then poured into bags, sealed, and shipped to consumers across the country (How Potato Chips Are Made).
water in the potato, then the water will go out of the potato and into
Kirkpatrick, Larry, and Gerald F. Wheeler. Physics: A World View. 4th ed. Orlando: Harcourt College Publishers, 2001.
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
Amusement parks are by far one of the most thrilling places on earth. As you wait in a long line to get in park, you can hear numerous kids, adults, and tourist shouting off the top of their lungs due to a tremendous jaw-dropping drop on their beloved roller coasters.
Achievement is not coming easily. Achievements require energy as well as a good plan and strategy to can achieve it successfully that is what United Arab Emirates (UAE) health care system did. The ambition of the UAE health care system to become one of the favorite destinations for local patients and a center for international medical tourists need high quality and cost-effective procedure and treatment, that is what makes UAE put long-term strategy to achieve this aspiration (WHO, 2009). In order to support the health care system, the UAE government increasingly focused its effort to attract unique high-level health care providers to the UAE. However, despite the strong support of the UAE government, health care providers, still facing major challenges to grow and operate in the UAE (Eid. n.d). There are many challenges faced UAE health care system, but the government and the health care system reject Surrender and still confront challenges without fatigue or boredom from its side.
Potato is one of the most nutritious and commonly edible foods in our society today. But there is a fascinating story of how Potato came to be widely consumed today around the world today. Potato also known as Solanum Tuberosum for its scientific identification was a wild plant. It was first domesticated in 10,000 BCE around the Lake Titicaca basin in the Andes region by the farmers. This region was not the best for agriculture because of the terrain but Potato rose to the occasion to become the most dominant food. Potteries of the Andean civilization depicted Potato as the chief crop. This region is in present day Southern Peru and Northwest Bolivia. The warm summer days enhanced the growth of plants and cold nights improved the growth of tubers; hence Potato was able to survive in this region. The farmers with their trial and error method figured that Potato can be bred through its seed. The seed of a Potato produce different fruits with varying sizes and color. The most significant of the domesticated Potato by the Andes farmers was the Solanum Tuberosum Andigena. This Potato had large tubers, well rounded and can grow only near the equator. Pre-Columbian population grew over 200 different types of Potato, making this plant few of the widely domesticated foods worldwide. The planting of Potato occurred at different elevations which enabled Andean farmers to plant and harvest it all through the year. Indigenous people of South America preserved Potato and stored it in case of a famine. The cold dry climate of the Andes region made this long-time preservation possible. The process involved covering of already harvested Potatoes from mist and leaving them in the cold night. The next day with sunshine on the Pota...