%0 Journal Article
%T The braking car problem: A challenging and stimulating test bench for beginning mechanical engineering students
%A Michele Mantegna
%J International Journal of Mechanical Engineering Education
%@ 2050-4586
%D 2019
%R 10.1177/0306419017751241
%X Introductory courses of physics should provide engineering students ¨C especially mechanical engineering students ¨C with a working knowledge of the laws of conservation of mechanical quantities, plus the capability of analyzing the kinematics and dynamics of simple mechanical systems (for instance, rolling wheels, which are a basic component of innumerable machines). Moreover, introductory courses of physics should teach the principle of relativity of classical mechanics which ¨C within limits ¨C allows to switch from an inertial reference frame to another. Experience proves that this is not always the case. The braking car problem is a challenging exercise which stimulates the ingenuity of beginning mechanical engineering students with its paradoxical nature. At the same time, the problem stress-tests their understanding of the basic tenets of mechanics and thermodynamics, preparing them for more advanced technical topics such as gears, cams, hydraulic machines, jet propellers
%K Applied mechanics
%K first law of thermodynamics
%K principle of relativity of classical physics
%K conservation laws of mechanical quantities
%K mechanical engineering education
%U https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0306419017751241