The Isaac Newton School of Driving

Physics and Your Car
Erscheinungsjahr 2003
ISBN: 978-0-8018-7417-8
Verlag: Johns Hopkins University Press

Buch, Englisch, 264 Seiten, Format (B × H): 164 mm x 203 mm, Gewicht: 476 g

For some people, driving is an art; for others, it's a science. At the Isaac Newton School of Driving, though, every car is a laboratory on wheels and every drive an exciting journey into the world of physics. As explained by renowned science writer and physics professor Barry Parker—whose father was a car mechanic and garage owner—almost every aspect of driving involves physics. A car's performance and handling relies on fundamental concepts such as force, momentum, and energy. Its ignition system depends on the principles of electricity and magnetism. Braking relies on friction—yet another basic scientific concept—and if the brakes fail, the resulting damage, too, can be predicted using physics.

Parker's first lesson describes the basic physics of driving: speed and acceleration; why you get thrown forward while braking or outward while turning; and why car advertisements boast about horsepower and torque. He goes on to discuss the thermodynamics of engines, and how they can be more fuel efficient; and what friction and traction are and how they keep a car's tires on the road, whether it's dry, wet, or icy. He also describes how simple laws of physics enable scientists to design aerodynamic cars and high-tech steering systems. Parker then explores the high-performance physics of auto racing, outlines how traffic accidents are reconstructed by police, uses chaos theory to explain why traffic jams happen, and describes what cars of the future might look like. Whether you drive a Pacer or a Porsche, The Isaac Newton School of Driving offers better—and better-informed—driving through physics.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Parker, Barry

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtswissenschaft Allgemein
• Naturwissenschaften Physik Physik Allgemein
• Mathematik | Informatik Mathematik Numerik und Wissenschaftliches Rechnen Angewandte Mathematik, Mathematische Modelle
• Technische Wissenschaften Verkehrstechnik | Transportgewerbe Fahrzeugtechnik

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Chapter 1. Introduction
Chapter 2. The Open Road: Basic Physics of Driving
Chapter 3. All Revved Up: The Internal Combustion Engine
Chapter 4. When Sparks Fly: The Electrical System
Chapter 5. "Give 'em a Brake": Slowing Down
Chapter 6. Springs and Gears: The Suspension System and the Transmission
Chapter 7. What a Drag: Aerodynamic Design
Chapter 8. A Crash Course: The Physics of Collisions
Chapter 9. Checkered Flags: The Physics of Auto Racing
Chapter 10. Rush Hour: Traffic and Chaos
Chapter 11. The Road Ahead: Cars of the Future
Chapter 12.
Epilogue: The Final Flag

Über Autor(innen)

Parker, Barry
Barry Parker is a professor emeritus of physics at Idaho State University and the author of The Isaac Newton School of Driving, also available from Johns Hopkins.

Barry Parker is a professor emeritus of physics at Idaho State University and the author of fifteen books, including Einstein's Dream, Relativity Made Relatively Easy, The Vindication of the Big Bang, and Cosmic Time Travel.