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The Physics of a Rolling Rubber Band

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the thank-god-that-is-solved dept.

sciencehabit writes "Modern physics can get complicated. Sure, researchers know exactly what forces act on a ball rolling down an incline — an experiment that helped Galileo develop universal laws for movement and acceleration. But what happens when a deformable shape like a rubber band rolls around? A new study reveals that the faster it goes, the more squashed it gets (video included)."

10 of 226 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Physics... by Anonymusing · · Score: 4, Funny

    Physics is pretty cool.

    I liked this quote from the article:

    As far as the potential applications, Clanet waxes futuristic. "I can imagine [designing] a car. The faster it goes, the more it deforms and the less friction it has with surrounding air, so it can go even faster. It would be a fantastic car."

    A car that changes its shape as it drives? Getting shorter, even? "Ouch, slow down, you hit my head!"

    Automobile safety experts would have a field day with that.

    --
    Liberal? Conservative? Compare perspectives at Left-Right
  2. Re:Delight to read... by Spad · · Score: 4, Funny

    I like to imagine that all scientists operate on this principle. They sit around doing boring paperwork until one of them says "I wonder what happens when a deformable shape like a rubber band rolls around?", to which one of the others replies "Quickly, to the lab!" and they all run off to investigate it.

  3. Re:Brakes, please. Please? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    Spellcheckers can't fix homophones.

    I can tell you have your spellchecker on, though I think you ment to write "homophobes".

    I too believe they should be fixed.

  4. Re:Wow, interesting! by Spad · · Score: 3, Funny

    ...due to centrifugal force.

    My high school physics teacher used to electrocute (With a handheld generator made from a rotary pencil sharpener) people for saying that; also for misspelling accelerate or satellite.

  5. This requires Yakety Sax by cangrande · · Score: 5, Funny

    All science videos are improved by Yakety Sax.

  6. Miracle by JustOK · · Score: 5, Funny

    Fucking rubber bands, how do they work?

    --
    rewriting history since 2109
  7. Re:Physics... by VolciMaster · · Score: 3, Funny

    I love Ben Rich's quote on that: "no one's been wing-walking at Mach 3 to verify that assumption" :)

    --
    antipaucity
  8. Re:Brakes, please. Please? by Bromskloss · · Score: 3, Funny

    Cars have brakes. "Car breaks" means it stops working because of mechanical or electrical failure.

    I honestly thought he was talking about car crashes and even though that was a strange way of saying it, I convinced myselft that is was physically sound.

    --
    Swedish plasma phys. PhD student; MSc EE; knows maths, programming, electronics; finance interest; seeks opportunities
  9. Re:Brakes, please. Please? by boxwood · · Score: 3, Funny

    a bit of tape stuck over the bottom left corner can fix a homophone.

  10. Obvious by wcrowe · · Score: 3, Funny

    A new study reveals that the faster it goes, the more squashed it gets.

    Well duh. Of course it does. Anyone who has watched a Roadrunner cartoon knows that.

    --
    Proverbs 21:19