Flutterby™! : Model Rocket simulation software

From the same Chris as yesterday, the RockSim Model Rocket Design and Simulation Software. Yeesh. Back when I was a boy, we had to build rockets with the center of drag in front of their center of gravity, and then dive behind a berm when they started to tumble on liftoff. Kids these days have it so easy...

Slightly more seriously, though, I do wonder about the replacement of tangible objects with simulation in education, and I hope that, since they're selling classroom packs, any teacher who incorporates something like this into the curriculum also suggests building a few of the bad designs so that students learn to check the simulations and compare (and contrast) the physical reality with the software.

[ related topics: Software Engineering Education Children and growing up Space & Astronomy Nostalgia ]

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#Comment Re: made: 2008-04-15 15:53:42.246208+00 by: meuon

And sometimes, when you do something "bad" just right, good or at least interesting things happen. The ability to 'kludge' a solution together is important. ie: Rocket is unstable, survived crash, given materials available can you compensate for the instability and relaunch.. in 10 minutes? in 30? With a pocket knife, some trash cardboard, some reeds from the field, tape and a broken tie wrap?

I heard this from a young girl a while ago: "I don't want a guy that can fix things and such, that takes too much time to learn, I want him to be able to talk about literature and.. .."

And I'm thinking: We need more people who know how things work, how to build things, how to fix things. and guys with skills are sexy. And a secret: Girls with physical world skills are sexy as well. (I gotta teach Nancy to weld.. )