The above picture shows a classroom at a school in Nottingham - yes, it 's the aeroplane. The Headteacher had the plane brought over from Liverpool Airport and refitted for lessons! It reminds me that there is a controversy in Physics about the way in which planes fly. I was taught the Bernoulli Effect explanation which focuses on the aerofoil shape of the wing - basically flat along the bottom and curved over the top. You then say that the wing splits the air. Some goes over the top, some goes over the bottom but the air joins up again at the back. It has to go further over the curved top so this means it has to go faster to keep its appointment to rejoin the air from the bottom at the back of the wing. Faster air has molecules that are more widely spread and thus at lower pressure. Higher pressure below the wing and lower pressure above: the wing is pushed up. Now it seems more acceptable to use Newton's Third Law as we did with the rowing boat last week. The wing is angled as it goes through the air to push air downwards. The air has mass (inertia) but obviously less than water. However, it means that the air pushes back up on the wing. There's the lift. If you search the Internet, you'll find that people get quite passionate about this debate. Here's one example: http://amasci.com/wing/airfoil.html
Incidentally, viewers in rural areas like Wigton might take note of the picture below. Even schools in nicer parts of the city have fences around them to keep you out of the grounds when school is closed.
