Journal of Science Education and Technology, Vol. 14, No. 1, March 2005 ( C  2005) DOI: 10.1007/s10956-005-2739-9 Computers With Wings: Flight Simulation and Personalized Landscapes Stefano Oss 1 We propose, as a special way to explore the physics of flying objects, to use a flight simulator with a personalized scenery to reproduce the territory where students live. This approach increases the participation and attention of students to physics classes but also creates several opportunities for addressing side activities and arguments of various nature, from history to geography, computer science, and much more. KEY WORDS: physics of flight; computer simulation; flyable scenery creation. PHYSICS OF FLIGHT AND FLIGHT SIMULATORS A very general issue in science education deals with the possibility of providing subjects of study and practical activities based on physics and asso- ciated technologies. There is an enormous amount of literature about such a general tendency. Yet, a common denominator in this scenario is quite well- defined and focused: students want to practice what they are taught and, whenever possible, they look for useful and modern themes. Science and physics, un- doubtedly, allow one to find out arguments of really appealing technological contents. Such exciting chap- ters of study should also constitute important steps in the cultural growth of students. Among the most fre- quently addressed subjects and questions in science (and technologies), one discovers that “how and why flying things fly?” is a best-seller in this field. There is a lot of bibliography and literature in the area of the physics of flight applied to educational purposes. Just to mention one point, looking at internet fo- rums and databases of papers/discussions it comes out quite clearly that the sentence “how wings—and airplanes and helicopters—fly” does not lead neces- sarily to a unique, nonambiguous answer (Babinsky, 1 Physics Department, University of Trento, 38050 Povo (Trento), Italy; e-mail: stefano.oss@unitn.it 2003). 2 So, one could start trying to invest time and energy in developing new curricula devoted to bring- ing physics and technology of flying objects in school activities. 3 Can this be done in an effective way, that is by making these arguments respectful of the above mentioned requirements, i.e. attractive, fun, useful, not-so-difficult at the same time? Besides addressing the problem through the usual path making use of the Bernoulli theorem, a possibly more intriguing way to get into direct touch with the experimental side of flight is to fly. If we want to feel the forces and to see how flying objects interact with the fluid medium, the air, we just have to pilot an airplane. A very direct, yet somehow difficult approach for quite understand- able reasons. Still, there is a serious, affordable, totally al- ternative way to address this problem. What we suggest here is to consider the adoption—as a special physics event in the class—of a simulated flight experience based on a computer “game,” such 2 An example of an active, open forum about Bernoulli theorem and flying objects can be found at the URL: www.irbs.com, and look for “Bernoulli” in the search field. See also Babinsky (2003). 3 Examples of educational applications of Flight Simulator at personal computer level can be found at the URL: www.lehman. cuny.edu/education/master/curriculum/berlowitz.htm and https:// wwwcfs.cnet.navy.mil/ttfbangor/pers dev/starbase/flight.htm. At the URL: www. microsoft.com/games/flightsimulator/fs2004 class room.asp some interesting notes on didactical projects adopting Microsoft  Flight Simulator  can be found. 117 1059-0145/05/0300-0117/0 C  2005 Springer Science+Business Media, Inc.