History of the Class Photos and Videos Class Calendar Animations

Catalog Description

Amusement park roller coasters excite us, scare us, and capture our imagination. What records will designers break next? How do they create rides that are exhilarating, yet physically safe? A scientific contemplation of these questions requires math and physics concepts such as vectors, parametric equations, curvature, energy, gravity, and friction. We consider these and more, providing background in basic and more advanced math and physics. During the second half of the unit, students conceive of and design projects to study specific aspects of roller coasters.

Curriculum development for this class was funded in part by a grant to Bates College from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.