Zero Gravity

For my signature assignment in my Math 1010 class, I chose the Zero Gravity

assignment. In this assignment, we were asked to find the parabola of a NASA training jet used

for simulating zero gravity. Using the parabola we had to find the max height the plane would

fly, using only data points to get the equation. For this problem, I had to use Graph plotting

skills, systems of 3 equation solving, and knowledge of how to find a vertex of a parabola.

Overall I do believe this project does have a vast number of real-world applications, other

than finding the height of a plane. For instance, the same kind of calculations could be used to

find the max height of a fly ball in baseball or to find how long it will take a projectile that’s

thrown into the air to reach it’s max-height. The other applications are endless, but this project

proves that math is used in everything around us. There were parts of this project that were

difficult that took me some time to figure out how to do, like changing the data points into the

equation of the parabola. But now that I have done it I will be better equipped for future math

classes.

This project helped me with my problem-solving skills because I want to be a robotics

engineer, so I will need lots of math and problem-solving skills such as these. With the skills, I

have learned in this class and other math classes to come I will be better equipped to move into

the workforce and design, build, and program robots to do a variety of tasks. With the skills, I

have learned from this project I could even program a robot to throw a ball into the air then move
forward to catch it because I can calculate how long after the ball is thrown into the air it will be

back at “zero”.