Physics Challenge Provides Thrilling Ride For Smithtown Students

From the Smithtown Central School District: Sixth-graders in the science of technology class at Great Hollow Middle School in the Smithtown Central School District recently designed their own roller coasters. The students have been working through the applied physics unit via the Project Lead the Way module.

Using the knowledge of potential, kinetic and dissipated energy, students worked in groups to design a roller coaster. The sixth-graders calculated the potential and kinetic energy of steel and glass marbles released from various heights along an incline. The roller coaster design challenge consisted of the success of a marble traversing the designed path while coming to a complete stop within six inches of the end of the roller coaster.

Photo caption: Via Project Lead the Way, sixth-graders in the science of technology class at Great Hollow Middle School in the Smithtown Central School District recently designed their own roller coasters.

Photo courtesy of Smithtown Central School District