4WDs-Activities

	Published by Australian Academy of Science
Activities \| Bogged down in the four-wheel drive debate?

Questacon (Australia)
- RoadZone: Educating tomorrow's drivers – A 62-page document providing educational material to complement an NRMA exhibition. Although aimed at 9-14 year olds, the activities beginning on page 44 are suitable for older students.
Consumer Jungle (USA)
- Transportation needs survey – students examine their personal wants, needs and uses of transportation.
Amusement Park Physics (Learner.org, USA)
- Colliding cars – students predict the outcomes of bumper car collisions.
Fear of Physics (USA)
- What happens when two things collide? – students view animations of vehicles of different sizes (eg, an SUV and a motorcycle) colliding. Explanations of the physics of the collisions are provided.
- Do an experiment with friction – students select different vehicles, speeds and distances and view an animation showing the effect on braking distance. An explanation of friction is available.
FRONTLINE (Public Broadcasting Service, USA)
- Rollover – the hidden history of the SUV – provides a variety of material related to a program covering the sports utility vehicle (SUV) debate in the United States. A transcript of the program is available.
Exploratorium (USA)
- Tired weight – calculate the weight of a car by using air pressure.
- Downhill race – show that acceleration depends on how the mass is distributed.
Student projects on road safety (Australian College of Road Safety)
- Questions and answers – six questions and answers relating to road safety issues. Question 5 particularly relates to four-wheel drives.

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Posted December 2003.

The Australian Foundation for Science is a supporter of Nova.

This topic is sponsored by NRMA – ACT Road Safety Trust.