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- Great
America home page!
http://www1.cedarfair.com/greatamerica/index.cfm
FAQ
page dedicated to Physics/Science/Math Days
http://www1.cedarfair.com/greatamerica/events/event_detail.cfm?event_id=45&ec_id=22
- Resources
from NASA
Several pages that contain resources that are useful
in understanding amusement park rides. A middle school
resource packet is included in pdf format. Keyed
primarily to two other parks but definitely worth the
look.
http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/outreach/appd/appd.html
- How
Roller Coasters Work
A set of pages from How Things Work. Includes a Flash
demo of energy in a typical roller coaster.
http://www.howstuffworks.com/roller-coaster.htm
- An
interactive page where you can learn about forces on a
roller coaster and construct your own virtual
coaster
http://www.learner.org/exhibits/parkphysics/
- Good
look at forces in a vertical loop
http://www.glenbrook.k12.il.us/gbssci/phys/mmedia/circmot/rcd.html
- How
to make roller coasters work
An interesting take on the physics of roller
coasters. Interactive with ability to vary simple roller
coaster parameters and see the results.
http://www.fearofphysics.com/Roller/roller.html
- Year
end projects. One is on roller coasters, and there are
others
http://www.glenbrook.k12.il.us/gbssci/phys/projects/yep/descrn.html
- A
middle school project-based learning project - Wild
Ride
This project was carried out in Idaho, away from a
park with real coasters. It's a good example of
project-based learning and the web site includes
excellent resources.
http://www.intel.com/education/projects/wildride/index.htm
- Scream
Machine - A Roller Coaster Web Quest
A webquest activity on roller coasters. Great
idea!
http://teacherweb.com/MD/OxonHillMS/TechEffectScreamMachineWebQuest/
- A
good set of links from our friends at Glenbrook South
High School in Illinois. The links are not
deliberately repeated here for the most part.
http://www.glenbrook.k12.il.us/gbssci/phys/projects/yep/coasters/rcinet.html
- The
Ultimate Roller Coaster Contest
A Discovery Channel lesson plan with many resources.
Geared to grades 6-8.
http://school.discovery.com/lessonplans/programs/rollercoaster/
- A
page on roller coasters, including several QuickTime
movies from some of the top roller coasters in the
country from CNN
http://www.cnn.com/TRAVEL/DESTINATIONS/9706/roller.coasters/coasters.html
- An
experiment that could be done with more URL's and other
information that can be obtained before going to the
park
http://homepage.mac.com/cbakken/physlab/plab99/labs/nmorley/rollercoaster.htm
- The web page for
the National Amusement Park Historical
Association Several good links off of this page,
too.
http://www.napha.org
- On-Line
Guide to Theme Park Resources
An extensive set of links to various resouces for people
interested in amusement parks.
http://www.themeparkpage.com
- Roller Coaster
DataBase
The RCDB is a comprehensive, searchable database with
information and statistics on over 1700 roller coasters
throughout the world.
http://www.rcdb.com/
- The
Ultimate Roller Coaster Site
A site devoted to all sorts of information about
roller coasters.
http://www.ultimaterollercoaster.com/
- Big
Links Page from UltimateCoaster.com. Includes
links to manufacturer pages.
http://www.ultimatecoaster.com/ultimatelinks.asp
- Another
Big Links Page from AmusementAdvantage.com.
http://www.amusementadvantage.com/amusement_links.htm#Roller
- Funderstanding
Roller Coaster A Java applet that allows you to
change the characteristics of a roller coaster and see
the end results. Requires a Java-enabled browser.
http://www.funderstanding.com/k12/coaster/
- Encyclopedia
Britannica has an excellent page highlighting
several key steps in the evolution of roller coasters. If
you click on some of the included links, there is an
excellent
page on the physics of roller coasters. Shockwave
is required.
http://search.eb.com/coasters/
http://search.eb.com/coasters/ride.html
- CoasterQuest.com
A site with some interesting information about
coasters and several pages of photos from coasters at
different parks.
http://www.coasterquest.com
- Coaster
Gallery
A site with pictures of roller coasters from many
parks, including Paramount's Great America.
http://www.coastergallery.com/
- Coaster
Grotto
Coaster Grotto provides an extensive reference for the
amusement park industry including a roller coaster
database, over 3000 original photographs, and 100
detailed theme park reviews, and over 36,000 ratings of
roller coasters.
http://www.coastergrotto.com
- American
Coaster Enthusiasts
ACE is an organization of amusement park junkies.
They love to ride. Bigger and faster are better! But they
are also interested in preserving the best of amusement
park rides from the past, too.
http://www.ACEonline.org
- Roller
Coaster Media Library
A free site where you can borrow amusement park media
items including videos. Worth looking into.
http://www.rollercoastermedialibrary.com/
Videotapes and DVD's
- Robb
Alvey's Roller Coaster Videos
You can preview some of his work, download previews of
several videos, then order online. Cost is very
reasonable!
http://www.themeparkreview.com/coastervideos.htm
Roller coaster
products
- Enter "Roller Coaster" in any search engine
Follow up links going to online shopping sites. Products
available include toy models from companies like K'NEX,
video simulation games like Sim Theme Park, and board
games like Roller Coaster Tycoon. One search engine gave
536,000 hits!
- TeacherSource
A company offering an eclectic variety of science items.
One interesting one (do a search) is the SKY-100. They
also carry K'NEX kits for education.
http://www.teachersource.com
- NoLimits
Roller Coaster Simulator A computer
simulation of roller coasters for PC or Mac with a free
trial version that can be downloaded from the
Internet.
http://www.nolimitscoaster.com/
- K'NEX
Roller Coaster Kits K'NEX makes several roller
coaster kits, and also kits which are designed to be used
in science classrooms.
http://bigbuilds.knex.com/wild_rides.php
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