One of the math problems I used to use in class was to have students plot a course from LAX to Heathrow using a Mercator Projection map. Typically, the key mistake they made was to draw a straight line from Los Angeles to London. I gave them the specs for the type of plane they were flying, i.e. a 747, or Airbus 300, etc. They would usually come up with the same solution, that something like this was not possible without stopping in New York or Boston for a refuel. They didn't realize that they could have made it in one trip by flying northward over the North Pole. I then used that as a lead-in to the problem of representing a three-dimensional earth on a two-dimensional map. Probably had more fun with that lesson than most I've taught.
I realize that modern jets can make long trips without refueling, but you get the point.
One of the math problems I used to use in class was to have students plot a course from LAX to Heathrow using a Mercator Projection map. Typically, the key mistake they made was to draw a straight line from Los Angeles to London. I gave them the specs for the type of plane they were flying, i.e. a 747, or Airbus 300, etc. They would usually come up with the same solution, that something like this was not possible without stopping in New York or Boston for a refuel. They didn't realize that they could have made it in one trip by flying northward over the North Pole. I then used that as a lead-in to the problem of representing a three-dimensional earth on a two-dimensional map. Probably had more fun with that lesson than most I've taught.
I realize that modern jets can make long trips without refueling, but you get the point.