9781422274774

CONNECTING STEM AND SPORTS STEM in Auto Racing STEM in Baseball & Softball STEM in Basketball STEM in Extreme Sports STEM in Football

STEM in Gymnastics STEM in Ice Hockey STEM in Soccer STEM in Track & Field

CONNECTING STEM AND SPORTS | EXTREME SPORTS

STEM CONNECTING SPORTS AND

STEM IN EXTREME SPORTS

JACQUELINE HAVELKA

mason crest PHILADELPHIA • MIAMI

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First printing 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

ISBN (hardback) 978-1-4222-4333-6 ISBN (series) 978-1-4222-4329-9 ISBN (ebook) 978-1-4222-7477-4

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CONNECTING STEM AND SPORTS | EXTREME SPORTS

CHAPTER 1 SKYDIVING ........................................................................9 CHAPTER 2 PARKOUR .........................................................................17 CHAPTER 3 CLIMBING ........................................................................27 CHAPTER 4 SKI JUMPING ...................................................................41 CHAPTER 5 SURFING ..........................................................................47 CHAPTER 6 BOBSLED .........................................................................55 CHAPTER 7 THE TECHNOLOGY OF EXTREME SPORTS ...................63 Series Glossary of Key Terms.................................................................76 Further Reading & Internet Resources...................................................77 Index......................................................................................................78 Author Biography & Credits...................................................................80 TABLE OF CONTENTS

KEY ICONS TO LOOK FOR:

Words To Understand: These words with their easy-to-understand definitions will increase the reader’s understanding of the text while building vocabulary skills.

Sidebars: This boxed material within the main text allows readers to build knowledge, gain insights, explore possibilities, and broaden their perspectives by weaving together additional information to provide realistic and holistic perspectives. Educational Videos: Readers can view videos by scanning our QR codes, providing them with additional educational content to supplement the text. Examples include news coverage, moments in history, speeches, iconic sports moments, and much more!

Text-Dependent Questions: These questions send the reader back to the text for more careful attention to the evidence presented there.

Research Projects: Readers are pointed toward areas of further inquiry connected to each chapter. Suggestions are provided for projects that encourage deeper research and analysis.

Series Glossary Of Key Terms: This back-of-the-book glossary contains terminology used throughout this series. Words found here increase the reader’s ability to read and comprehend higher-level books and articles in this field.

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INTRODUCTION

Macaroni and cheese. Texting and emojis. STEM and sports. What? STEM—and sports? Yes! When one thinks about STEM classes and sports, they seem like opposites, right? You’re either in the classroom learning, or you’re on the playing field. But STEM and sports really do go together. STEM is education in four specific areas—science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Rather than being taught as separate subjects, STEM curriculum is integrated together for real-world learning. When a science class visits an amusement park, the students learn the principles of physics, use math to make calculations, and learn about the engineering and technology used to construct roller coasters and other rides. Extreme sports demonstrate the core principles of physics in amazing ways. These sports require not only athletic strength, speed, and agility but also a knowledge of physics. Extreme sports are all about science and energy, and Newton’s three laws definitely apply: > Newton’s First Law: An object at rest stays at rest. In order to move, an external force must act on it. This defines the law of inertia. > Newton’s Second Law of Motion defines the famous F=ma equation. This law says that the force of an object is equal to its mass multiplied by its acceleration. > Newton’s Third Law of Motion states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. If you are surprised to find that physics are squarely behind the amazing gravity-defying moves of extreme sports, don’t be. Let’s take a look at how STEM concepts apply to some of the coolest extreme sports. We’ll explore concepts like force, inertia, acceleration, and projectile motion, all important to these incredible events.

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KEY ICONS TO LOOK FOR:

Words To Understand: These words with their easy-to-understand definitions will in the reader’s understanding of the text while building vocabulary skills. WORDS TO UNDERSTAND Sidebars: This boxed material within the main text allows readers to build knowled gain insights, explore possibilities, and broaden their perspectives by weaving toget additional information to provide realistic and holistic perspectives. Educational Videos: Readers can view videos by scanning our QR codes, providing with additional educational content to supplement the text. Examples include news coverage, moments in history, speeches, iconic sports moments, and much more! momentum: a property of a moving body that det rmines the length of time required to bring it to rest when under the action of a constant force surface area: the amount of space within a given boundary covered by th upper layer f somethi torque: a force that produces rotation

Text-Dependent Questions: These questions send the reader back to the text for careful attention to the evidence presented there.

Research Projects: Readers are pointed toward areas of further inquiry connected t chapter. Suggestions are provided for projects that encourage deeper research and

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CHAPTER

THROWING SKYDIVI G Introduction

Don’t skydivers make their acrobatics look effortless? They look like they are surfing in the air, and those somersaults look so easy. Looks can be deceiving. A lot of physics is involved in those maneuvers. How do they do it? It’s All about Forces For skydivers to make their moves, they must know all about forces. As soon as they jump from the plane, they are in motion. Therefore, the skydivers have momentum . Two constant forces act on the skydiver: gravity is pulling the skydiver down toward Earth, and air resistance is pushing up on them. The principle of momentum says that when the net of these forces changes, so does the skydiver’s momentum. It is important to remember that every force is an interaction between two objects: not only is the air pushing on the skydiver, the skydiver is also pushing on the air.

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Have you ever wondered what’s happening when a skydiver appears to

be hovering in the air? The hover means the net force is zero. About twelve seconds after the jump, the skydiver reaches a speed where the air resistance force increases to balance the force of gravity. The air is pushing up on the skydiver with the

Air pushes on a skydiver falling toward the earth, but the skydiver is pushing on the air as well.

exact force that gravity is pulling them down. When net forces are zero, momentum is constant, and therefore momentum also equals zero. It looks like magic, but it is really physics! Once a skydiver learns how to hover, they can move on to more complex moves. Moving Up or Down Of course, any skydiver wants to do more than just hover in the air. How do they do the cool stuff? Think of a skydiver’s body as a board. If a human is stretched straight out as tall (or as long) as possible, then the air resistance is hitting a larger object, or a larger surface area . What do you think happens if the skydiver tucks his or her body into a tight ball, kind of like doing a cannonball in the pool? In figure 1, the left image depicts a skydiver with zero net force.

CONNECTING STEM AND SPORTS | EXTREME SPORTS 10

The right image shows what happens when the skydiver has tucked into a ball, thus decreasing the body area. The decreased area means that there is a lower air force because the air is coming into contact with less of the body’s surface. However, the gravitational force remains the same, so the net force is pushing down. This means the skydiver will increase downward momentum. The skydiver will continue downward motion until he or she stretches out again to increase the air resistance force to once again be equal to or greater than the force of gravity. A skydiver can reach a speed of 120 miles per hour in the spread-eagle position (shown on the left side of figure 1) but, when tucked in, might reach up to 200 miles per hour in speed.

F air

Figure 1

F air

F gravity

F gravity

Twists and Turns How would a skydiver make sideways moves? Skydivers learn to position their bodies just so to move left and right. The blue ball toward the bottom of Figure 2 represents air hitting the body at an angle. This causes the skydiver

In the spread eagle position, skydivers will fall as fast as 120 mph.

CHAPTER 1 : SKYDIVING

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Figure 2

to rotate in the opposite direction, up and to the right. This graphic provides

an excellent example of Newton’s Third Law of Motion, which states that for every action, there is an equal and Skydivers train themselves to move in midair by changing the direction of the air resistance on their bodies. KEY ICONS TO LOOK FOR:

Words To Understand: These words with their easy-t the reader’s understanding of the text while building v

opposite reaction. Skydivers learn to

Watch this amazing video as two skydivers’ movements are traced as they perform skydiving maneuvers in an air tube. You can literally see physics in motion! Educational Videos: Readers can view videos by scan with additional educational content to supplement the coverage, moments in history, speeches, iconic sports Text-Dependent Questions: These questions send th careful attention to the evidence presented there. Sidebars: This boxed material within the main text all gain insights, explore possibilities, and broaden their additional information to provide realistic and holistic

position their bodies to move forward or backward. By changing directions, they are changing the direction of the air resistance force acting on their bodies. Airplanes make similar maneuvers. Pilots orient flaps on the wings to move the plane in a

Research Projects: Readers are pointed toward areas chapter. Suggestions are provided for projects that en

Series Glossary Of Key Terms: This back-of-the-book used throughout this s ries. Words found here increas comprehend higher-level books and articles in this fiel

certain direction. To stop the move, the skydiver must create a force in the opposite direction to change momentum. Skydivers spend lots of practice time changing positions, which is pretty difficult to achieve in midair.

CONNECTING STEM AND SPORTS | EXTREME SPORTS 12

KEY ICONS TO LOOK FOR: for torque is force times distance . The hands are far away from the skydiver’s center of mass, so distance is maximized. Therefore, even a small force, such as a hand movement, can create a significant amount of torque to turn the skydiver in different directions. Wingsuits If regular skydiving isn’t extreme enough for you, check out the even more extreme sport of wingsuit flying. The jumper uses a special suit called a wingsuit, also sometimes called a birdman suit or squirrel suit. The jumpsuit has arm and leg wings made Skydivers also turn in midair. How? It requires torque and rotational velocity, or speed. Skydivers can turn their hands to produce a force that creates rotation. If a skydiver moves their hands to push air left, the body rotates to the right. The formula

Words To Understand: These words with their easy-to-underst the reader’s understanding of the text while building vocabular

Sidebars: This boxed material within the main text allows reade gain insights, explore possibilities, and broaden their perspectiv additional information to provide realistic and holistic perspecti Educational Videos: Readers can view videos by scanning our with additional educational content to supplement the text. Ex coverage, moments in history, speeches, iconic sports moments

of inflatable cells that increase the skydiver’s surface area to increase lift. The suit allows wingsuit flyers to travel incredible horizontal distances at speeds of 220 miles per hour. That’s fast! Jumpers also have a much slower descent—sometimes as much as 80 percent slower than a egular skydiver. These athletes train for years to achieve maximum performance while wearing the suit. Wingsuit flying is much more complex than regular skydiving, and it carries greater risk of uncontrollable spinning.

Text-Dependent Questions: These questions send the reader careful attention to the evidence presented there.

Research Projects: Readers are pointed toward areas of further chapter. Suggestions are provided for projects that encourage

Series Glossary Of Key Terms: This back-of-the-book glossary used throughout this series. Words found here increase the rea comprehend higher-level books and articles in this field.

Two wingsuit fliers soar over Palau and the Pacific Ocean.

CHAPTER 1 : SKYDIVING

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Indoor Skydiving You’ve probably seen places that offer indoor skydiving. How is this possible? Indoor skydiving uses a type of wind tunnel called a closed-loop wind tunnel. The tunnel is a vertical tube, and internal air powered by blowers circulates in a loop inside the tunnel. The force at which the blowers push air through the tunnel can be altered, so beginners can enjoy a fun experience, and professionals can perfect their best moves against powerful wind forces before they do the real thing. These tunnels work the same way as if a person were really skydiving. Creating a larger vertical surface of your body perpendicular to the air flow will decrease your velocity, whereas decreasing your surface area (such as a standing position on the floor of the tunnel) will increase your velocity.

Skydiving can be simulated on the ground using a closed-loop wind tunnel.

CONNECTING STEM AND SPORTS | EXTREME SPORTS 14

KEY ICONS TO LOOK FOR:

Words To Understand: These words with their easy-to-understand definitions will increase the reader’s understanding of the text while building vocabulary skills.

Text-Dependent Questions: 1. What are the physics behind a skydiver just hovering in the air? 2. How would a skydiver move downward? 3. Why do slight hand movements create so much torque? Sidebars: This boxed material within the main text allows readers to build knowledge, gain insights, explore possibilities, and broaden their perspectives by weaving together additional information to provide realistic and holistic perspectives. Educational Videos: Readers can view videos by scanning our QR codes, providing them with additional educational content to supplement the text. Examples include news coverage, moments in history, speeches, iconic sports moments, and much more! Text-Dependent Questions: These questions send the reader back to the text for more careful attention to the evidence presented there. Educational Videos: Readers can view videos by scanning our QR codes, providing them with additional educational content to supplement the text. Examples include news coverage, moments in history, speeches, iconic sports moments, and much more! Text-Dependent Questions: These questions send the reader back to the text for more careful attention to the evidence presented there. Research Projects: Readers are pointed toward areas of further inquiry connected to each chapter. Suggestions are provided for projects that encourage deeper research and analysis. Series Glossary Of Key Terms: This back-of-the-book glossary co tains ter inology used throughout this series. Words found here increase the reader’s ability to read and co prehend higher-level books and articles in this field. Research Project: If you haven’t ever been skydiving, no worries! Try this simple air-resistance experiment on your own, and imagine what it might be like to skydive. Stick your hand out the window when riding in a car (watch out for trees). Feel the air pushing against your hand. The faster the car, the more air resistance there will be on your hand. Remember that any force is an interaction between two objects. Not only is the air hitting your hand, your hand is hitting the air. Close your hand into a fist. What changed? Is there less force on your hand? Try it while holding a variety of objects (but be safe!). Record your observations. R search Projects: Readers are pointed toward areas of further inquiry connected to each chapter. Suggestions are provided for projects that encourage deeper research and analysis. Series Glossary Of Key Terms: This back-of-the-book glossary contains terminology used throughout this series. Words found here increase the reader’s ability to read and comprehend higher-level books and articles in this field. Words To Understand: These words with their easy-to-understand definitions will increase the reader’s understanding of the text while building vocabulary skills. Sidebars: This boxed material within the main text allows readers to build knowledge, gain insights, explore possibilities, and broaden their perspectives by weaving together additional information to provide realistic and holistic perspectives.

KEY ICONS TO LOOK FOR:

CHAPTER 1 : SKYDIVING

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KEY ICONS TO LOOK FOR:

Words To Understand: These words with their easy-to-understand definitions will in the reader’s understanding of the text while building vocabulary skills. WORDS TO UNDERSTAND Sidebars: This boxed material within the main text allows readers to build knowled gain insights, explore possibilities, and broaden their perspectives by weaving toget additional information to provide realistic and holistic perspectives. Educational Videos: Readers can view videos by scanning our QR codes, providing with additional educational content to supplement the text. Examples include news coverage, moments in history, speeches, iconic sports moments, and much more! acceleration: the act or process of moving faster or happening more quickly over a given time peri d parkour: the sport of traversing environmental obstacles by running, climbing, or leaping rapidly an efficiently traceur: a person who participates in the sport of parkour Text-Dependent Questions: These questions send the reader back to the text for careful attention to the evidence presented there.

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Research Projects: Readers are pointed toward areas of further inquiry connected t chapter. Suggestions are provided for projects that encourage deeper research and