Steering Towards Efficiency

The racing team is just as important to a car.s finish as the
driver is. With little to separate competitors over hundreds of
laps, teams search for any technological edge that will propel them
to Victory Lane. Of special use today is computational fluid
dynamics, which is used to predict airflow over a car, both alone
and in relation to other cars (for example, when drafting).
Engineers also rely on more basic subjects, such as calculus and
geometry, to improve their cars. In fact, one racing team engineer
said of his calculus and physics teachers, the classes they taught
to this day were the most important classes I.ve ever taken.(1)
Mathematics helps the performance and efficiency of non-NASCAR
vehicles, as well. To improve engine performance, data must be
collected and processed very rapidly so that control devices can
make adjustments to significant quantities such as air/fuel ratios.
Innovative sampling techniques make this real-time data collection
and processing possible. This makes for lower emissions and
improved fuel economy goals worthy of a checkered flag. For More
Information: The Physics of NASCAR, Diandra Leslie-Pelecky, 2008.