Damn Lasers

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Feb 072013
 

One question I often get about the Intermediate level goes something like this:

How do I keep from getting shot by the lasers?

The answer is that you can’t avoid it. The lasers will always get you. The trick is to negate the effect of getting shot by the lasers.

The reason why getting shot by the laser produces bad consequences is because it happens asymmetrically. One leg gets shot off first, then the other. We’ll discuss the physics behind this later in the semester. But if you have symmetric thrust on while the body is asymmetric, the spuCraft will begin to rotate. Yikes.

If you keep the thrust off while the body is asymmetric, you’ll be OK.

Perhaps you can start thinking about why.

Unable to maneuver spuCraft

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Feb 072013
 

The purpose of Spumone is to develop your engineering problem-solving skills, not your gaming skills. If you feel that you do not have the eye-hand coordination to get the spark and land safely on the bridge, let me know. I can get you past this part, so that you can focus on the engineering.

If the menu world is too difficult to0, let me know.

Drop Help – How to approach a belt.

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Feb 062013
 

Note: Before addressing this part of the problem, I suggest that you figure out exactly how much you should apply as your spuCraft is passing the first belt. There is a help page here on that subject.

Before reaching a belt, you must get the spuCraft to the right speed. This can be complicated. But it can also be very simple.

My suggestion is to make it simple. You do not get any extra points for a smooth flight in Drop. Let gravity do most of the work. Then fire the thrusters at just the right moment.

I would suggest that you sketch plots of position, velocity, and acceleration. Your plots should start at the bridge and continue until it reaches the first belt. At the bridge, the spuCraft should be motionless. By the time it reaches the belt, it has to be moving at the constant speed of the belt. How do you get from one point to the other? Keep it simple! Remember that it’s OK to match the speed of the belt before you get to the belt.

 

Drop Help – Landed on pad. Now what?

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Feb 062013
 

If, in the top half of the Drop World, you successfully land on the pad (bridge), but nothing happens, it probably means that you neglected to get something. There is a billboard on the left side of the hole that provides a clue. It says: “Got Spark?”

Up in the top portion of the hole, there is an machine that will give you a spark to bring back down to the bridge. For more instruction on how to get the spark click here.

Drop Help – How much thrust?

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Feb 062013
 

In order to make it past Belt 1, your spuCraft is going to have to descend at the same constant speed as the belt. To think through how much thrust to apply perform the following tasks.

  1. Draw a free body diagram (FBD) of the spuCraft as it is passing Belt 1. Remember that only forces pushing and/or pulling on the vehicle belong on the FBD.
  2. (This is the most important part of the problem.) Draw a mass-acceleration diagram (MAD) for the spuCraft as it is passing Belt 1. Here, I want you to think carefully. I don’t want you to draw a generic acceleration on the diagram. You should draw the acceleration of the spuCraft assuming that it is successfully completing the challenge. Think carefully about the definition of acceleration.
  3. Using the forces on your FBD, and the acceleration on your MAD, write Newton’s second law. Solve for the thrust. Here’s your answer, at least when you are passing Belt 1.
  4. Repeat the same process for Belt 2. How does it differ?

 

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