Engines

Positives

• This video is a great way to introduce students to how their skills in math and physics can be applied in the real world.
• This resource explains the math behind concepts like efficiency and the coefficient of performance in simple terms.
• By scrolling over the scroll bar at the bottom of the video, you can see at what point specific topics like the Carnot cycle or ideal efficiency are discussed.

Additional Prerequisites

• The video moves quickly between functions, graphs, and topics, so it may be best to pause and have students reflect after each topic.
• This resource is intended for students who already have a foundation in physics and understand the laws of thermodynamics.

Differentiation

• To connect this resource to climate change topics, have students consider what role the steam engine played in the development of societies and economies and the importance of this invention to the industrial revolution, pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, and resource extraction.
• This resource can be used in math classes during lessons about writing, simplifying, and graphing functions.
• The information about steam engines and refrigerants can be used by other science classes and social studies classes without focusing on the equations. Have students think about how engines and refrigerants changed our relationship with the Earth, amplified our ability to (literally) move mountains, and permanently colonize areas of the planet that would otherwise be uninhabitable.