The Physics of NASCAR: How March Meeting Physicists Have Unique Opportunities to Share Physics with the Public

Ask the average person on the street about physics and you'll probably hear about black holes, astronomy, quarks, or gravitational waves. Anyone attending the March Meeting, however, knows that most of the physics presented here has significantly more impact on the average person's life than any black hole.

Most physics outreach is aimed at a smal elite group of college-degreed, already science-interested people. But there are millions more who want -- who need -- to know about science, scientists, and how science is done. Drawing on my decade of experience sharing the science of motorsport through television, books, blogs and a regular spot on SiriusXM Satellite radio, I'll share ideas for how you can not only reach this underserved audience, but also broaden the public's perception of what physics really is. I'll also share a few things I've learned along the way: why there are lots of engineers, but few physicists, in NASCAR; the NASA technology in every NASCAR racecar; the move toward electric vehicles and sustainability; safety innovations that started on the track and moved to the interstate, and the cheap polymer component used on racecars that the military now uses on their helicopters.