My Roller Coaster Project
By Caden Lewis
My Roller Coaster
Speed, Velocity, and Acceleration
Speed is the distance divided by the amount of time you take to cover that distance. Whenever you speed up it means that you covered more difference in less time or more distance in the same time, either way you want to say it works. Usually on a Roller Coasters like mine you stay at a constant speed until you reach a drop or some sort of hill where you eventually drop down, once you are going down the drops your speed increases this is called an Acceleration. Acceleration is a CHANGE in speed, notice how I bolded the word change... people tend to think that Acceleration is only when you positively change your speed meaning when you get faster. That is incorrect! Acceleration happens whether you are getting faster or slower. Which leads me to Velocity, Velocity is basically the exact same thing as speed. Velocity is the rapidity of motion or operation. So whenever you see Velocity just think the speed of the object it is describing or just any object
The Laws of My Coaster
The 1st law states "An object in motion stays in motion and an object at rest stays at rest unless an Unbalanced Force acts upon this." Which means that when you are either starting you ride or when your ride is ending. This is because when your ride is starting the cart has been at rest while you were being seated the Unbalanced Force acting upon it is the conveyer belt which is getting your ride started, and when your ride is ending you are going at a constant speed but then your Unbalanced Force (The Machine) slows you down to a stop so that you can exit the ride. Next you can have the 3rd law depending on what type of Roller Coaster you are riding. "Each action has an equal and opposite reaction." Meaning for every action there is either going to be a similar force coming from it or a complete opposite force. When going on different Roller Coasters there are some coasters where there are conveyer belts under the tracks that are rolling the opposite way the Roller Coaster is going, this sends you Roller Coaster going even faster causing an "opposite reaction".
The Unbalanced, Balanced, Potential, and Kinetic Forces of Roller Coasters
Unbalanced Forces and Balanced Forces tie into Roller Coasters because they are what keeps the Roller Coaster on the path it is supposed to take. Whether you are loading into the seats and the Coaster needs to be stopped so you can enter, or whether it is to keep the Roller Coaster going so that you don't get stuck somewhere along the ride. Kinetic and Potential Energy also tie into Roller Coasters because while on your way up a steep hill or going up a loop you are gaining Potential Energy. While going down a steep drop or going down a loop... anytime you are going down you are gaining Kinetic Energy
Facts on Coasters
Roller coaster history can be traced back to 16th century Russia where people rode sleds down ice covered slides.The amusement-park industry has experienced a coaster boom of sorts in the past 15 years or so. New catapult launching techniques, hanging-train designs and other technological developments have opened up a world of options for designers. In recent years, designers have introduced coasters that have you lying flat against the train car so you feel as if you are flying, and coasters that shoot you down long stretches of spiraled track. "Fourth dimension" coasters spin or rotate your seat as the ride twists, turns and free-falls. In this article, we'll also keep you in the loop on all the newest features and innovations.