Wingsuits

Definition

A wingsuit is a specialized jumpsuit used in extreme sports that adds surface area to the human body to enable a significant increase in lift, allowing for a controlled and prolonged descent. Wingsuits are often used by skydivers and BASE jumpers.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

1. The integral of the wingsuit's velocity function over time gives the total distance traveled during the descent.
2. Wingsuit flight can be analyzed using parametric equations, where one parameter represents time and other variables represent horizontal and vertical positions.
3. The Fundamental Theorem of Calculus links the derivative of the position function with the velocity function, which is crucial in understanding how changes in velocity affect wingsuit flight paths.
4. To find the total change in altitude during a wingsuit flight, one must evaluate a definite integral of the vertical component of the velocity function over time.
5. Optimization techniques involving integration can determine the best angle for maximum glide ratio in wingsuit flying.

Review Questions

• How does integrating the velocity function help understand wingsuit flight?
• What role do parametric equations play in modeling wingsuit trajectories?
• Explain how the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus applies to analyzing wingsuit descent.

Related terms

Definite Integral: Represents the accumulation of quantities, such as area under a curve or total distance traveled.

Parametric Equations: $x = f(t)$ and $y = g(t)$ describe curves by expressing coordinates as functions of a parameter, often time.

Fundamental Theorem of Calculus: $\frac{d}{dx} \int_{a}^{x} f(t) dt = f(x)$ connects differentiation and integration, showing that integration undoes differentiation.