Gradient Demo

This is a project in development.  It's sole purpose now is to provide a visual demonstration of how efficient using the gradient of a scalar potential function can be in determining the force on an object as opposed to a brute-force application of Newton's 2nd Law.

I'll have a more fulsome write up about the mathematics and physics behind this project on this page in time, but for now, you can check out the section in our evolving textbook for the Math and Physics for Games course (MATH/PHYS191) at JCCC, http://jccc-mpg.wikidot.com/work-energy-power#toc9.

Controls:

• Left-click to place a gravitating body in the field.
• Right-click to remove a body.
• AD or <- -> to rotate the ship
• W to engage the thruster.  (Looking into why Up doesn't work)

To-Do:

• Determine why the minimap is so noisy in WebGL
• Add UI to adjust simulation parameters.
• Add a start screen with a tutorial page
• Introduce some gameplay elements (goal seek, obstacle avoidance)
• Explore an option to have the stars move, too