"Dream, Dream, Dream! Conduct these dreams into thoughts, and then transform them into action."
- Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam
"Dream, Dream, Dream! Conduct these dreams into thoughts, and then transform them into action."
- Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam
16 Jan 2023
What used to be an idle pass time for many now has a scientific explanation for it. An equation has been developed by experts to explain how stones skim the water.
The mathematical model takes into account a variety of stone sizes and shapes, as well as the angle of the throw and the water pressure. The model can accurately anticipate how stones will skim through the water when they are tossed.
The researchers discovered that while the larger stones can jump higher and evoke a "super-elastic" response from the surface of the water, the flatter stones can skim across the water's top for longer. Larger, heavier, and curvier stones can work just as effectively, though stone skippers seem to choose flatter ones.
Pressure from below the water rises up when a stone makes contact with the surface. The stone will skip further if the pressure is enough and applied at the right angle, else it will sink below the surface. The findings are significant for aircraft design, notably for the landing gear of aircraft intended to land on water. The equations can forecast how different designs will perform during landing.
Predicting thrown stones was only a pleasant byproduct of the researchers' work, which was to analyze the behavior of items that skim across the water.
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