Fast Cars and Science
School Videos

Part of the WGBH Collection
Closed-captioned for the hearing impaired
Funded by the National Science Foundation

Fast Cars and Science , a set of four video teaching modules based on the NOVA one-hour television documentary of the Indianapolis 500 (IndyCar) races. The subject focus is physics - visually putting the audience at the controls of an IndyCar to introduce basic aerodynamic principles and to demonstrate how these sophisticated machines harness the force of the wind to allow them to stick to the race track in 200-miles-per-hour- corners. The videos are for classroom teaching to high school students and adults with little scientific background. The viewer will see champion race drivers such as Bobby Rahal and his team of engineers test one variable at a time to achieve an understatnding of these complex machines months before a car is raced.

Educators may purchase Fast Cars and Science School Videos individually, or as a set of four (Note: Each order comes with a Teacher's Guide), from:
WGBH Educational Foundation
(800) 255-9424, ext. 9409

The Invisible Force of the Wind
This video puts students at the controls of an IndyCar to introduce basic aerodynamic principles and to demonstrate how these sophisticated machines harness the force of the wind to allow them to stick to the race track in 200 miles-per-hour corners.

Test Day
Months before a car is raced, it is tested for days on an empty track. We join champion driver Bobby Rahal and his team of engineers as they test one variable at a time to achieve an understanding of a complex machine.

To Survive at High Velocity
Using vectors to illustrate how a car can actually accelerate in a corner without a noticeable change in speed, this video presents a key physics concept -- velocity -- to help students understand why champion drivers say, "It's the corners that make the driver and the car."

A Racing Engine for the Indy 500
Two giant American companies, Ford and Chevrolet, and their English partners battle for supremacy at the Indy 500. This video demonstrates how an internal combustion engine changes chemical energy to mechanical energy to produce power.