The maths behind what makes a Formula One world champion
With Lewis Hamilton recently becoming three-time Formula One world champion, a new course offered by the University looks at how calculus is used in motor racing to calculate fuel consumption and the forces a driver experiences during a race.
‘Real World Calculus: How Maths Drives Formula One and Launches Angry Birds’, a free ‘Massive Open Online Course’ (MOOC), will teach people how calculus lays the foundation for many things we take for granted, from making mobile games such as Angry Birds work to enhancing an assortment of disciplines, such as engineering, biology and geography.
The course approaches mathematics in an accessible way by taking real world activities and using them to uncover the basic elements of calculus.
The course combines articles, activities, and videos of experts in finance, physics and engineering describing why calculus is important in their own particular field. The course also provides the opportunity to join on-line discussions on a wide range of maths-related topics - from the wear on car tyres to who was responsible for the credit crunch.
'Real World Calculus: How Maths Drives Formula One and Launches Angry Birds’ begins on 9 November 2015 and will last for three weeks, with a workload of two hours per week.