Can't Pick Yourself Up on a Chair?

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When sitting on a chair, attempting to lift yourself using your hands fails because of the equal and opposite forces at play. When you apply an upward force on the chair, the chair exerts an equal downward force on you, preventing any upward movement. This force typically transfers to the ground when standing, but while seated, it transfers to the chair instead. As a result, the forces cancel each other out, making it impossible to lift the chair with you on it. The discussion highlights the amusing nature of this physical phenomenon.
decibel
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how come if u sit down on a chair, you can't pick ur self up with your hands
like say u sit on a chair and u cross ur legs with nothing touching the ground or floor, and taking ur hands and tryin to lift the chair with u on it...
how come you can't do that
 
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decibel said:
how come if u sit down on a chair, you can't pick ur self up with your hands
like say u sit on a chair and u cross ur legs with nothing touching the ground or floor, and taking ur hands and tryin to lift the chair with u on it...
how come you can't do that
Because if you apply an upwards force on the chair, it applies an equal force downwards on you (on your hands, but you're considered a rigid body in this case, so it's downwards on you as a whole). Normally, if you were not on top of the chair (if you were on the ground) then you would end up transferring this force downwards onto the ground. However, since you're on the chair, you transfer it downwards to the chair. The force that you apply upwards on the chair is ultimately counterbalanced by the force that you end up applying downwards on the chair, resulting, of course, in no lifting of the chair.
 
I'll tell you one thing, that would look damn funny :biggrin:
 
So I know that electrons are fundamental, there's no 'material' that makes them up, it's like talking about a colour itself rather than a car or a flower. Now protons and neutrons and quarks and whatever other stuff is there fundamentally, I want someone to kind of teach me these, I have a lot of questions that books might not give the answer in the way I understand. Thanks
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