Approximating the Brachistochrone by Line Segments

Requires a Wolfram Notebook System
Interact on desktop, mobile and cloud with the free Wolfram Player or other Wolfram Language products.
This Demonstration shows an approximation of a brachistochrone (cycloid curve) by line segments. A point mass rolling along the polygonal line cannot move faster than it would along the cycloid.
Contributed by: Sven Spenner (August 2011)
Open content licensed under CC BY-NC-SA
Snapshots
Details
detailSectionParagraphPermanent Citation
"Approximating the Brachistochrone by Line Segments"
http://demonstrations.wolfram.com/ApproximatingTheBrachistochroneByLineSegments/
Wolfram Demonstrations Project
Published: August 26 2011