On Fri, 16 Jan 2009 13:30:11 -0600, Mike Raiford wrote:

> Jim Henderson wrote:
> 
>> simulated, the math and physics are the same for the airfoil.  But for
>> the person doing simulation, there's this thing called a library that
>> we can link into to figure out the fancy math for us - so we don't need
>> to memorise arcane formulae.  We just need to know the inputs to a
>> function and the outputs from a function.
> 
> I'm playing devil's advocate a bit, but ... what if there is no such
> library that would give you the values you need regarding lift, etc.
> What if part of what you need to do in the simulation is to create these
> calculations? Then you must certainly know these arcane formulae.
> 
> Granted, if something is needed enough, you won't be the first person to
> do it and a solution will be available...

When it comes to formulae for airfoil calculations, that's all pretty 
well established now.

But even if you needed to create the library, how many people do you know 
who would rely solely on their memory when creating a library that 
hundreds or thousands of people might end up using?  I know *I'd* be 
referring to my books to make sure I implemented the formula correctly.

Jim

Post a reply to this message