Students using Virtual Worlds
Ninja Physics on ReactionGrid
Science is definitely not my strong point, so when I saw Kyle G's tweet about Ninja Physics on ReactionGrid, I assumed it would be completely beyond me!
I attended Kyle's class on the Ninja sim where I spent about 30 minutes playing, learning and creating. The Ninja Physics concept allows users to create objects that move in the same way that they would in real life. At the moment, there is a swing and model of Newton's Cradle. Both behave in the same way as the real life versions, right down to the movements of a swing when you jump off!
We were taught how to make a simple ball and socket joint, using the building tools. As I am still quite new to virtual worlds and especially building, I was not feeling confident at all. However, Kyle was incredibly patient, taking us patiently through each step. By the end of the class we had created a movable ball and socket joint! The nice part about this concept is that no scripting knowledge is required.
There are enormous possibilities here and I could see this being something that students would love!
In a follow-up tweet Kyle wrote, "10 Physics Ninja's born this week will become brown belts next week. Create ball joints, hinges and more. Create trees with individual limbs. Will be running other follow-up classes about Ninja Physics."
Kyle will be running a couple of sessions each week. I found the Friday 3:00pm (AEDT) time-slot a really nice way to end the working week!
I attended Kyle's class on the Ninja sim where I spent about 30 minutes playing, learning and creating. The Ninja Physics concept allows users to create objects that move in the same way that they would in real life. At the moment, there is a swing and model of Newton's Cradle. Both behave in the same way as the real life versions, right down to the movements of a swing when you jump off!
We were taught how to make a simple ball and socket joint, using the building tools. As I am still quite new to virtual worlds and especially building, I was not feeling confident at all. However, Kyle was incredibly patient, taking us patiently through each step. By the end of the class we had created a movable ball and socket joint! The nice part about this concept is that no scripting knowledge is required.
There are enormous possibilities here and I could see this being something that students would love!
In a follow-up tweet Kyle wrote, "10 Physics Ninja's born this week will become brown belts next week. Create ball joints, hinges and more. Create trees with individual limbs. Will be running other follow-up classes about Ninja Physics."
Kyle will be running a couple of sessions each week. I found the Friday 3:00pm (AEDT) time-slot a really nice way to end the working week!
Tags: Ninja Physics, ReactionGrid
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Comment by Judy O'Connell on October 26, 2009 at 12:58am - Wow Lucy, how fabulous that you dropped in and learnt some new things. I must see if I can drop by some time too! Cheers, Judy
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