Most people do not realize the tremendous amount of physics that goes into creating video games, explains a Southeastern Louisiana University physics professor.
The role of physics in video games will be the focus of the next Science on Tap lecture presented by Southeastern's Department of Biological Sciences on Tuesday.
Associate professor of physics Rhett Allain will be the featured speaker at 7 p.m. at Tope La Catering, 113 E. Thomas St., Hammond. The lecture is free and open to all ages with doors opening at 6:30 p.m.
“Many people are familiar with the popular game Angry Birds for mobile phones. The basic idea is to fling some birds toward structures with pigs in the hopes of knocking them over,” Allain said.
But is there real physics in a game like this? Allain’s presentation will demonstrate simple experiments in the game to learn the methods that model the motions of these birds as well as activities in other video games. “And we’ll discuss how this can be used as a method to explore the scientific process,” he added.
Allain is a frequent contributor to WIRED magazine and maintains a physics-oriented page on the publication’s website, wired.com/category/dotphysics/. A former physics consultant for the television show “Mythbusters,” he currently serves as a consultant for the popular CBS show “MacGyver.”
For information on this or future Science on Tap presentations, contact the Department of Biological Sciences at (985) 549-3740.