Why Cats Land on Their Feet: And 76 Other Physical Paradoxes by Mark Levi

By Mark Levi

Ever ask yourself why cats land on their ft? Or what holds a spinning best upright? Or if it is attainable to suppose the Earth's rotation in an aircraft? Why Cats Land on Their Feet is a compendium of paradoxes and puzzles that readers can remedy utilizing their very own actual instinct. And the excellent solutions to almost all of those wonderful paradoxes should be arrived at with out formal wisdom of physics.

Mark Levi introduces each one actual challenge, occasionally offers a touch or , after which totally explains the answer. the following readers can try their critical-thinking talents opposed to a complete collection of puzzles and paradoxes concerning floating and diving, crusing and gliding, gymnastics, motorbike using, outer area, throwing a ball from a relocating motor vehicle, centrifugal strength, gyroscopic movement, and, after all, falling cats.

Want to determine how you can open a wine bottle with a ebook? Or find out how to compute the sq. root of a bunch utilizing a tennis shoe and an eye fixed? Why Cats Land on Their Feet indicates you ways, and all that's required is a familiarity with uncomplicated high-school arithmetic. This energetic assortment additionally beneficial properties an appendix that explains all actual recommendations utilized in the e-book, from Newton's legislation to the basic theorem of calculus.

Show description

Read or Download Why Cats Land on Their Feet: And 76 Other Physical Paradoxes and Puzzles PDF

Best physics books

Physico-Chemistry of Solid-Gas Interfaces

Primary hassle-free evidence and theoretical instruments for the translation and version improvement of solid-gas interactions are first offered during this paintings. Chemical, actual and electrochemical points are offered from a phenomenological, thermodynamic and kinetic perspective. The theoretical elements of electric homes at the floor of a pretty good also are coated to supply higher accessibility for people with a physico-chemical historical past.

Problems for Physics Students: With Hints and Answers

This booklet is a set of a few four hundred physics difficulties, with tricks on their recommendations, and solutions. The physics coated encompasses all parts reviews through final-year (advanced point) scholars in faculties and excessive faculties. the writer has targeting proposing attention-grabbing (and to some degree strange) difficulties which are solved utilizing the actual ideas quite often taught in complicated college classes.

Additional resources for Why Cats Land on Their Feet: And 76 Other Physical Paradoxes and Puzzles

Example text

31 32 WHEEL FAILURE Spokes that break during sprints or hard climbing all had fatigue cracks and were near failure. Failures from excessive pedaling force are practically impossible, because no cyclist is strong enough to produce the torque required. To receive breaking tension, a spoke must be pulled to one side by an obstruction. Torque will not do it. Such side loads more often break nipples than spokes. Spoke fatigue is caused almost exclusively by the radial load from the weight of the bicycle and rider.

29 30 WHEEL FAILURE Figure 14. Stress vs. strain curve METAL FATIGUE Metals suffer from fatigue, but unlike a fatigued human, metal does not recover with rest. The fatigue limit is how often the metal can be stretched or bent back and forth in the elastic stress zone before it develops a crack and breaks. For most applications fatigue life is measured in millions of cycles. The closer a cyclic stress is to the elastic limit (the boundary between elastic and plastic zones) the sooner the material will break.

The hardness and insulation reduce brake efficiency because brake pads become hotter than they would against bare aluminum. Anodized rims are also weaker because the hard oxide is brittle. Surface cracks in the brittle surface that occur from high stress at spoke holes can propagate into the metal and cause spoke break outs. Such failures are relatively common in hard anodized rims. The reduction in fatigue life for anodized aluminum is documented in scientific publications by the aircraft industry among others.

Download PDF sample

Rated 4.06 of 5 – based on 10 votes