- #1
tommy01
- 40
- 0
Hi everybody,
I encountered this question as an example of what a google applicant is asked:
You are shrunk to the height of a 2p coin and thrown into a blender. Your mass is reduced so that your density is the same as usual. The blades start moving in 60 seconds. What do you do?
It is cited in various media, e.g. in wired and they all give the following answer:
Those who were paying attention in rocket-science class will recall the formula for the energy of a projectile: E = mgh. E is energy (of a bottle rocket, let's say), m is its mass, g is the acceleration of gravity, and h is the height the bottle rocket attains. The height increases in direct proportion with energy (as long as mass stays the same). Suppose you tape two bottle rockets together and light them simultaneously. Will the double rocket go any higher? No; it's got twice the fuel energy but also twice the mass to lift against gravity. That leaves the height, h, unchanged. The same principle applies to shrunken humans jumping. As long as muscle energy and mass shrink in proportion, jump height should stay the same.
This argument seems to be wrong to me, for it would also apply to every insect of that size. "Muscle energy" is a somehow strange concept here ...
Any answers are appreciated.
Kind regards,
Tommy
I encountered this question as an example of what a google applicant is asked:
You are shrunk to the height of a 2p coin and thrown into a blender. Your mass is reduced so that your density is the same as usual. The blades start moving in 60 seconds. What do you do?
It is cited in various media, e.g. in wired and they all give the following answer:
Those who were paying attention in rocket-science class will recall the formula for the energy of a projectile: E = mgh. E is energy (of a bottle rocket, let's say), m is its mass, g is the acceleration of gravity, and h is the height the bottle rocket attains. The height increases in direct proportion with energy (as long as mass stays the same). Suppose you tape two bottle rockets together and light them simultaneously. Will the double rocket go any higher? No; it's got twice the fuel energy but also twice the mass to lift against gravity. That leaves the height, h, unchanged. The same principle applies to shrunken humans jumping. As long as muscle energy and mass shrink in proportion, jump height should stay the same.
This argument seems to be wrong to me, for it would also apply to every insect of that size. "Muscle energy" is a somehow strange concept here ...
Any answers are appreciated.
Kind regards,
Tommy