Introduction
Why? People love the thrill of it: the scream provoking turns and the stomach churning loops.
You sit in the seat and pull down the padded bars to fit snuggly. The attendant checks to make sure they are locked in place. The cars begin to move and climb up, up and up. Your car reaches the top and then starts down the other side. You pick up speed; go up smaller hills, around curves, through tunnels, and around loops. Eventually you slow down and come to a stop back at the station. Your safety harness releases and you exit the ride. What a thrill.
The rides feel dangerous, but they are perfectly engineered to be safe but feel like you are breaking the rules of science. Potential energy, kinetic energy, gravity and friction play a huge part in the safety and success of the ride.
Why don’t the cars of a roller coaster fly off the track? Why don’t the passengers fly out of the cars? How high can the first hill of a roller coaster be? What physical laws determine how many hills, curves, and loops a roller coaster track can have? You will discover these answers as you complete this webquest.
Task
Your job in this web quest is to find out how roller coasters work and use this information plan design and build a simple model of a roller coaster.
You will learn about the history of roller coasters, laws of motion, and about velocity and acceleration.
You will design virtual roller coaster tracks and see what happens to the coaster when you change variables such as height of hills, length of track, mass of the coaster, and speed of the coaster.
Then you will use simple materials (paper and tape) to build a model and test your roller coaster track.
Process
Answer all the following questions on the worksheet and complete the interactive designs.
http://www.learner.org/exhibits/parkphysics/coaster.html
1. What do some people call an amusement park roller coaster? Why?
2. What gives a roller coaster its power? (What makes them go)?
3. What “drives” the roller coaster?
4. What helps keep the ride smooth?
5. Click on “Design a Roller Coaster.” Follow the directions to create your own coaster. Did your design pass or fail? What was your safety rating?
6. What did you have to do in order to make your coaster fun and safe?
http://search.eb.com/coasters/ride.html
Go to this site for a graphic of a roller coaster with labels identifying the types of forces that affect the coaster as it follows the track. Click on the labels to learn more about that force.
7. Where does potential energy happen?
8. Where does the rider feel like they are falling?
9. Describe how gravitation and centripetal acceleration make a person feel.
10. Where do the riders experience acceleration?
11. Where do they experience centripetal force?
12. Describe how friction plays a necessary role in a roller coaster.
Check out the energy in a roller coaster ride! Read the article and play the picture on this page to answer the questions below.
http://science.howstuffworks.com/roller-coaster3.htm
13. What is potential energy? At which point is potential energy the greatest?
14. What is kinetic energy? At which point is kinetic energy the greatest?
Open the link below. Click the VIEW button.
http://www.teachersdomain.org/resource/hew06.sci.phys.maf.rollercoaster/
15. What do you notice about the relationship between potential and kinetic energy and the path of the coaster?
16. Design your own online roller coaster
http://content3.jason.org/resource_content/content/digitallab/4859/misc_content/public/coaster.html
http://www.gamesgames.com/game/rollercoastercreator
http://discoverykids.com/games/build-a-coaster/
http://rollercoastergamesonline.com/roller-coaster-games/digital-labs-coaster-creator
Evaluation
Use your knowledge of roller coasters and the Engineering design process to create a marble roller coaster.
The design process worksheet and a draft drawing need to be completed before any construction takes place.
The structure must be free standing. 
The only materials available are paper parts, tape, and scissors.
The marble must successfully and safely complete the entire course. The course should last at least 1 minute.
Conclusion
New roller coasters are engineered every year. Adults and children look forward to trying out the new coaster at amusement parks all around the world.
Understanding the science behind the roller coasters helps you appreciate the brilliance of the coaster's design engineers. They must consider so many factors to be sure that the ride is fun, not frightening. What a tight rope to walk!
While completing this WebQuest, you’ve learned about the physical laws in roller coaster design, the differences between potential and kinetic energy, and other things that affect roller coaster design. You learned about problem-solving and critical thinking skills and how to use the engineering design process to solve a problem. You built a model roller coaster and tested your design.
How did your design work? Did you have to make adjustments to the original design? How did your model roller coaster compare to a real roller coaster?