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Do Now
What was the hardest part of learning to ride a bicycle? What would you change about how today's bicycles are designed? Share your thoughts and stories.
Introduction
Learning to ride a bicycle is a strong memory from many of our childhoods. Bicycles have been around since the 1800s, although their design has changed from the earliest models. The Draisienne is one of the earliest two-wheeled machines. Made out of wood, it had two wheels of the same size mounted in a frame and handle bars to steer. There were no pedals, so people pushed themselves along with their feet.
The next model to come along was the Velocipede or Boneshaker in the 1860s. It was similar to the Draisienne, however it had pedals added to the front wheel. The wheels were still made of wood, and later metal. This bicycle earned its name "Boneshaker" from the movement riders received when pedaling over the cobblestone roads present during that time.
The High Wheel bicycle had popularity in the 1880s. With one huge rubber tire in front and a smaller one in back, they were easy to ride and fast, but dangerous. Because of the large front wheel and the rider sitting high up, anything to stop the motion of the front tire, including brakes, often caused the back of the bicycle to flip up and over.
Bicycles more like we are used to today--the Safety bicycles--were developed in the 1890s. With two same-sized inflated rubber tires, pedals in between the two wheels and a chain drive, these bicycles were easy to ride and much more comfortable. They became all the rage. Today there are 1 billion bicycles worldwide. Scientists are now studying the process of how we balance while riding a bicycle with the hopes of designing an even more efficient model.
Resource
KQED QUEST segment The Science of Riding a Bicycle
Riding a bicycle might be easy. But the forces that allow humans to balance atop a bicycle are complex. QUEST visits Davis – a city that loves its bicycles – to take a ride on a research bicycle and explore a collection of antique bicycles. Scientists say studying the complicated physics of bicycling can lead to the design of safer, and more efficient bikes.
To respond to the Do Now, you can comment below or tweet your response. Be sure to begin your tweet with @KQEDedspace and end it with #KQEDDoNow
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More Resources
How to Build a (Research) Bicycle
View a captioned slideshow about how the research bicycle was built that is featured in the QUEST story The Science of Riding a Bicycle.
