Newton's third law of motion "lives" among the bumper cars. This Law of interaction, says that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. This law helps to explain why a rider feels a jolt when he or she collides with another bumper car.

Bumper car rides are designed so that the cars can collide without causing danger to those riding. Each car is equipped with a rather large rubber bumper around it, which prolongs the impact and diffuses the force of the collision.

Bumper cars run on electricity, conducted by a pole on the back of each car that leads up to a wire grid in the ride's ceiling, which harnesses the electrical energy. The electrical energy carried to the cars from the grid is converted to kinetic energy, some of which converts to heat.

When bumper cars run together, the drivers feel a change in their motion and become aware of their own movement (inertia). Though the cars may stop or change direction, the drivers continue in the direction they were moving before the collision. This is why it's crucial to wear a seat belt while driving a real car, since a person could suffer injury by being thrown forward in a collision.

Collisions are also affected by the sheer masses of drivers. A difference in mass between two bumper car riders will mean that one rider will experience more change in motion than the other (or a larger jolt). The kind of collision, velocity of the involved cars, and the mass of the drivers also play roles in bumper car collisions.

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Newton was responsible for laying down the fundamental laws of the physical universe: the principles that describe not only how things work, but also why they work that way. These principles are his famous Laws of Motion, and they were built upon the discoveries of great scientific minds that came before him.

In 1642, Newton was born in Lincolnshire, England.  He showed no talent for his family's line of labor, farming.  He was a true genius concerning mathematics.

Using the work of famous predecessors such as Galileo, Copernicus, and Kepler, he laid out the principles of his own laws of motion. These were universal theories that tied the work of these great minds together.

He once stated, "If I have seen further than other men, it is because I stood on the shoulders of giants."

The true Newton was insecure, bad tempered, and sometimes reclusive. Yet, he explained the physical laws that allow us travel in space and build the most exciting amusement parks. These are the laws of motion:

Newton's first law extended the work of Galileo. This law states that bodies in motion will stay in motion, unless they are acted on by an external force. Also, bodies at rest will stay at rest, unless they are acted upon by an external force.

The Second Law of Motion: The Law of Acceleration

Newton's second law explains how an object’s mass and the amount of force applied to an object are related to the acceleration of an object. The law says that the greater the mass of an object, the more it resists being moved, the smaller its acceleration will be. Also, the greater the force applied to an object, the greater the object's acceleration will be.

The Third Law of Motion: The Law of Interaction

Newton's third law explains how objects interact with one another:

Every action produces an equal and opposite reaction.

Bumper cars are a real-life example of this law of motion. When a car hits another car, it exerts a force on that car. However, more physics take place. For example, even if a car hit a car that is at rest, the car at rest would still exert a force on the moving car. These forces are opposite-moving in different directions from each other.