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STANDARDS
CCSS: 7.G.B.4
TEKS: 7.9B
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Spokeless Wheel
The carriages have TV and WIFI, in case you get bored of the scenery.
This spokeless Ferris wheel just opened in eastern China. Instead of rotating around a central axle—like a typical Ferris wheel—the Bailang River Bridge Ferris Wheel features a circular track that carries its 36 carriages around the wheel’s circumference. A motor at the base powers the 28-minute roundtrip ride.
The wheel is a giant circle built from small triangles. Both are strong shapes, says Rebecca Thompson, a physicist at the American Physical Society. Removing the heavy spokes from the center reduces both the total weight and the amount of energy required to rotate the wheel. “From a physics perspective, this seems like a much more intelligent design,” says Thompson.
The Bailang River Bridge Ferris Wheel is 125 meters in diameter. What’s the length of the track around its circumference? (Approximate π as 3.14) Record your work and answer on our Numbers in the News answer sheet.
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