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Aritifical Gravity Devices

Posted by Hemos on from the making-space-easier dept.

Screenbert writes "This article talks about simulating gravity for space missions. However this article also spawned deeper and darker questions. Go with me on this for a minute.... If you spin something around really fast and you are on it, you get pushed to the edge of the spinning object. IE, a merry-go-round. Gravity is a side-effect of mass. Since the earth is spinning, it pushed everything out from it, thereby having a counter-effect of mass. So if the Earth where to stop spinning, would we become mushrooms?&"

2 of 8 comments (clear)

  1. You don't really get pushed away from the center. by Siqnal+11 · · Score: 2
    It's an illusion. The floor is pressing against your feet. The radial acceleration in circular motion is always directed towards the center of the motion.

    When you are turning a corner in a car, it seems like you are being pushed to the side away from the center. Actually, your inertia is tending to keep you going in a straight line and your car is accelerating towards the center of the curve.

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    You are a fucking moron.
  2. if the Earth stops rotating... by Tumbleweed · · Score: 2

    We'd have more to worry about than being heavier, to put it mildly. First off, those of us who don't die by freezing on the dark side, or frying on the light side, will probably have to deal with flooding from the now-deeper oceans. I don't know what effect this would have on tides & plate tectonics, but I bet it might not be too pretty. Sure would make for a stronger human after several generations, though, I bet! :^)