Soar like a Digital Eagle

Why try to teach a physics class on the aerodynamics of how planes fly by writing lift, thrust and drag equations on the board when students can interactively design their own aircraft, and explore these parameters for themselves. Gliders by Design from Seeds Software lets students start with a variety of materials, like balsa wood, foam or paper and design their own imaginary digital craft. With a little help from the program, they can create their own wings, fuselage length and thickness, and then simulate its flight – all without cutting or gluing anything. The program works with Macs and PCs, and costs $45.