My thoughts…

I have chosen rollercoasters as my third topic because it’s something a bit more fun that I am interested in. I am particularly interested in how they work and how they are designed to engage with the human body at the very brink of being incredibly dangerous. What is it about being flung through the skies at immense speeds with just a little strap to hold you on, that gives you such a burst of adrenaline, rather than just paralysing you with fear? It is bizarre.

When it comes to the design, I am curious as to how the structure is constructed in a way that is thrilling but also safe to ride. I want to know the mathematics and logistics behind how they shape the roller-coaster, how they decide on the journey to ensure a satisfactory experience and how they decide and test the velocity.

I think that it is unusual that as humans we decided to push our bodies to such extremes, so much that our hearts are racing and we’re so out of breath that we are red-faced and panting. What is so alluring about a burst of adrenaline and what else replicates that effect besides rollercoasters. Why is it that this experience is thrilling to some but to others it makes them sick to their stomachs, or has them sobbing from fear?

There is a famous rollercoaster model designed by Julijonas Urbonus knowns as the Euthanasia Coaster. It is a hypothetical rollercoaster that was designed to be a “humane, elegant and euphoric” solution for those who wanted to end their lives. A method of assisted suicide. It aimed to give users a diverse range of experiences from euphoria, thrill, tunnel vision, to loss of consciousness and eventually death. It is an extremely controversial idea, as is assisted suicide in general which I think makes it all the more interesting because it inspires some deep philosophical conversations, questioning what is moral and not.

I would like to know if there are similar hypothetical designs of experiences, similar to the Euthanasia Coaster, that explores how designs that are considered absolutely outrageous. It would also be fun to explore what people think is too dangerous and roller coaster designs have been rejected because they were perhaps a bit too thrilling or terrifying to ride.

Simulated experiences of rollercoasters are another avenue I could research. VR simulators of rollercoasters provide a similar experience and it would be exciting to find out what design measures are put in place to simulate the thrill of a roller-coaster. How much of the experience is dependent on the environment of a theme park? How do VR Headsets achieve a successful simulation in comparison to an arcade motion simulator? Is the ride still thrilling if the user is blindfolded?