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Roller Coaster Vanderbilt Student Volunteers for Science Training Presentation Fall 2004.

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Presentation on theme: "Roller Coaster Vanderbilt Student Volunteers for Science Training Presentation Fall 2004."— Presentation transcript:

1 Roller Coaster Vanderbilt Student Volunteers for Science Training Presentation Fall 2004

2 Important!!!! Please use this resource to reinforce your understanding of the lesson! Make sure you have read and understand the entire lesson prior to picking up the kit! We recommend that you work through the kit with your team prior to going into the classroom. This presentation does not contain the entire lesson—only selected experiments that may be difficult to visualize and/or understand.

3 I. Introduction (Optional) Please see manual for detailed explanations. The Law of Conservation of Energy states that: –Energy can be neither created nor destroyed by ordinary means. –Energy can only be converted from one form to another. –There are five forms of energy: mechanical, heat, chemical, electromagnetic, and nuclear. –There are two states of energy: kinetic and potential. All five forms of energy can be classified into either one of these states of energy (kinetic or potential). How Does a Roller Coaster Work? The ride often begins as a chain and motor or other mechanical device) exerts a force on the train of cars to lift the train to the top of a very tall hill. Once the cars are lifted to the top of the hill, gravity takes over and the remainder of the ride is an experience of the physics of energy transformation. The conversion of potential energy to kinetic energy is what drives the roller coaster, and all of the kinetic energy you need for the ride is present once the coaster descends the first hill.

4 II. Demo: Gravitational Potential Energy Conversion to Kinetic Energy Have 1 or 2 VSVS members hold the track so that it forms a U shape. Hold it in the air so that all students can see. Ask students to predict what will happen to the speed of the car as it rolls through the U- shaped track. Release the car. All students should observe what happens to the speed of the car.

5 II. Demo: Gravitational Potential Energy Conversion to Kinetic Energy Draw a U shape on the board. Ask students the following questions: –Where was the car traveling at the fastest speed? (at the bottom of the U) –Where was the car traveling at the slowest speed? (at the tops of the U) –Where does the car have the most kinetic energy? (at the bottom of the U) –Where does the car have the least kinetic energy? (at the tops of the U) –Where does the car have the most potential energy? (at the tops of the U) –Where does the car have the least potential energy? (at the bottom of the U) Put these results on the U-shaped diagram on the board (as shown on the right).

6 IV. Potential Energy and Roller Coasters Divide students into groups of three or four (No more than 8 groups.) Give each group a set of materials and an observation sheet. Tell them to design a roller coaster with the following specifications: –The first hill (the starting point) has to be at a height of 4 feet. –There must be at least two more hills after the first hill. –The BB must complete the journey without any assistance from the group. Tell students to tape or hold the styrofoam cup at the end of the tubing to catch the BB. The tubing for the roller coaster can be taped or draped across various items in the room (desks, tables, walls, etc.). The group that creates a roller coaster with the most total inches of height in the three hills wins the contest. A successful roller coaster is one in which the BB travels from beginning to end without getting stuck in the tube.

7 IV. Potential Energy and Roller Coasters Answer the following questions: –A. What things affected whether your roller coaster worked or not? –B. What happened when you made a steep hill? –C. Where did the BB have the most potential energy? –D. Where did the BB have the most kinetic energy? –E. What happened to the potential energy as the BB went from the top of the hill to the bottom of the hill? –F. Using the roller coaster as an example, put in your own words what "conservation of energy"means.


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