gotpho Posted November 20, 2007 Report Posted November 20, 2007 Hi guys My assignment is to give a presentation about Aerodynamics to the class. I'm thinking about talking about it's history first and such but I don't know what to do next. Any ideas on what I can talk about? I know I should talk about Lift, Thrust, and such but what else? Should I also just generalize to just planes or animals as well? Quote
Turtle Posted November 20, 2007 Report Posted November 20, 2007 Hi guys My assignment is to give a presentation about Aerodynamics to the class. I'm thinking about talking about it's history first and such but I don't know what to do next. Any ideas on what I can talk about? I know I should talk about Lift, Thrust, and such but what else? Should I also just generalize to just planes or animals as well? There is no older aerodynamic human-made structure than the kite. As luck has it (or not:hyper:) I am currently reworking a large box kite into a large rhomboid kite in order to increase lift, but at the expense of stability. Well, kites in general and here's our kiting thread. Welcome to Hypography. :hyper:>> http://hypography.com/forums/watercooler/2366-kites-kiting-6.html?highlight=kites Quote
freeztar Posted November 20, 2007 Report Posted November 20, 2007 It sounds like you are on the right track, gotpho. Using birds *and* airplanes would help to illustrate the effect better imo. Researching birds' feathers and their wing dynamics could potentially help you better illustrate the inspiration for modern aeronautics. How specific do you need to be (or how long is the presentation supposed to be)? Quote
gotpho Posted November 20, 2007 Author Report Posted November 20, 2007 It sounds like you are on the right track, gotpho. Using birds *and* airplanes would help to illustrate the effect better imo. Researching birds' feathers and their wing dynamics could potentially help you better illustrate the inspiration for modern aeronautics. How specific do you need to be (or how long is the presentation supposed to be)? I'm suppose to present a 15+ minute presentation with a visual (such as power point or website) and just explain my topic. The problem is that I'm not such what I should focus on. I'm looking at this book and there's like 329 pages about aerodynamics. Clearly, I don't need that much info or go that in depth. The first part I'll be talking about is the history and then talk about the fundamentals such as air movement, lift & drag, and then I just don't know where to go:confused: Any physics expert or scientists have any suggestion? Quote
Turtle Posted November 20, 2007 Report Posted November 20, 2007 I'm suppose to present a 15+ minute presentation with a visual (such as power point or website) and just explain my topic. The problem is that I'm not such what I should focus on. I'm looking at this book and there's like 329 pages about aerodynamics. Clearly, I don't need that much info or go that in depth. The first part I'll be talking about is the history and then talk about the fundamentals such as air movement, lift & drag, and then I just don't know where to go:confused: Any physics expert or scientists have any suggestion? :phones: Again, you can not talk about the development of aerodynamics without talking about the role of kites in history. >> Kite - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Look up Hargrave or Alexander Graham Bell, who's works were not lost on the Wright brothers. No really. :) Quote
freeztar Posted November 20, 2007 Report Posted November 20, 2007 For a 15 minute presentation, you will not have much time to go into a lot of detail. Talking about the history, mechanisms, and the modern uses should cover 15+ minutes. Start with that and then do a practice presentation with a stopwatch. If you come in under 15 minutes, then you can add details to one of the three sections. Quote
gotpho Posted November 20, 2007 Author Report Posted November 20, 2007 Again, you can not talk about the development of aerodynamics without talking about the role of kites in history. >> Kite - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Look up Hargrave or Alexander Graham Bell, who's works were not lost on the Wright brothers. No really. :phones: Uh huh, I see. For a 15 minute presentation, you will not have much time to go into a lot of detail. Talking about the history, mechanisms, and the modern uses should cover 15+ minutes. Start with that and then do a practice presentation with a stopwatch. If you come in under 15 minutes, then you can add details to one of the three sections. Your right, maybe I don't have enough time to go that detailed but won't the mechanism be the same with mostly all the object that are able to obtain flight? I mean bird and planes follow the same principle of thrust, lift, drag, and weight with only structural differences. Quote
freeztar Posted November 20, 2007 Report Posted November 20, 2007 Your right, maybe I don't have enough time to go that detailed but won't the mechanism be the same with mostly all the object that are able to obtain flight? Yep.I would definitely talk about the structural differences. For a powerpoint presentation, it might be neat to have a table showing the similarities and differences between, say, feathers and a jet wing. Quote
gotpho Posted November 21, 2007 Author Report Posted November 21, 2007 Yep.I would definitely talk about the structural differences. For a powerpoint presentation, it might be neat to have a table showing the similarities and differences between, say, feathers and a jet wing. ok thanks but i'll back with more questions:D Quote
gotpho Posted December 13, 2007 Author Report Posted December 13, 2007 Question about Bernoulli's principle. The greater the velocity of a fluid, the lesser the pressure It applies to curved wings on an airplane but what about symmetrical wings? Can lift be generated on a symmetrical wing or is it impossible? Quote
freeztar Posted December 13, 2007 Report Posted December 13, 2007 Look here for your answer:Airfoil - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia For some more good info applied to birds, check out this page and scroll down to the section titled "The Mechanics of Flight in Birds".Aerodynamics of Animals - Birds - Intermediate Quote
Qfwfq Posted December 13, 2007 Report Posted December 13, 2007 As that article says, airfoil shape is by no means essential to have a lift, it improves the ratio of lift to drag. An angle of attack is essential, without it a wing would never lift an aircraft. Quote
gotpho Posted December 13, 2007 Author Report Posted December 13, 2007 Oh I see, so a positive angle of attack would mean better lift right? Quote
Turtle Posted December 19, 2007 Report Posted December 19, 2007 As that article says, airfoil shape is by no means essential to have a lift, it improves the ratio of lift to drag. An angle of attack is essential, without it a wing would never lift an aircraft. Nor lift a kite for that matter, where the lift producing positive angle of attack is set by means of the bridle(s). Properly bridled and given a strong wind, it is possible to fly a barn door. Other factors affecting lift on an airfoil shaped wing include the rake and the sweep. A piece on rake: http://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/20060045566_2006130622.pdf A piece on sweep: Bent wing sweep - Patent 5531277 I think the Sabre Jet was the first US fighter jet to employ swept wings? For the Soviets it ws the MIG. Quote
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