Originally posted by: BlinderBomber
Originally posted by: Mxylplyx
If this is true, I weep for the future of this country if a large number of people actually thinks the plane will take off. Sometimes, you just need to let retarded people be retarded.
You're kidding, right? Seriously. You're joking... aren't you? Jesus America is stupid and it's a sad commentary on our stupidity when a show takes on something that is a matter of physics as a
"myth". There is nothing myth-like about it.
Hopefully Mythbusters will also explore the myth about 'gravity' next. :roll:
They did one with a truck full of pigeons, wherein the pigeons would all take off - would the truck's weight change?
Well let's see, the mass doesn't change, so no, the weight wouldn't change.
Originally posted by: MrDudeMan
If you understood a simple free-body diagram, you would realize the plane actually does take off. The force the engines exert is in a completely different direction than the force exerted by the weight of the plane and the treadmill. Actually, I don't even know why I'm wasting my time.
The problem is that people think that the treadmill will exert a force upon the plane which counters the engines. I believe that, for this problem, the wheels are assumed to have frictionless bearings.
In that case, none of the treadmill's momentum is transferred into the plane. That's what people just don't see.
Originally posted by: TuxDave
But if you assume a non-zero moment of inertia on the wheels and the treadmill's ability to always accelerate regardless of the velocity, you can prevent the plane from taking off.
I think the "myth" only says that the treadmill matches the velocity of the engines or the wheels, or something like that. Sure, if it could accelerate to infinite velocity.....well, the wheels would disintegrate and quite possibly rip the wings to pieces. No, the plane wouldn't take off.
Even so, to build up enough rotational inertia, the treadmill would have to be moving pretty damn fast.
Originally posted by: brxndxn
They'll make two shitty-ass models.. Then the red head will look hot.. Then one model will crash and burn. The other will start coming apart. The read head will smile and look cute. Then, they'll use the one that's coming apart. It won't take off on the treadmill or off the treadmill. Then, they'll conclude decisively that the myth is either busted or plausible.
Ah, so you've seen the show before.
I'm worried that they'll use a crappy model that has really high friction on the wheels, which will prevent it from moving forward freely.
Either way, busted or plausible, this won't put it to bed.