Heavy Objects Bouncing: Factors & Variables

  • Thread starter Thread starter autodidude
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Bounce
AI Thread Summary
The discussion centers on the factors affecting whether heavy objects bounce when dropped from a height. It emphasizes that the object's weight alone does not determine its bouncing behavior; rather, the elasticity of the materials and the square-cube law play crucial roles. As objects increase in size, their volume grows faster than their surface area, affecting their overall properties and stability upon impact. A hypothetical giant rubber ball would likely not bounce due to the immense shockwave generated upon impact, which could cause structural failure. Understanding these dynamics is essential for analyzing the bouncing behavior of large objects.
autodidude
Messages
332
Reaction score
0
How heavy does an object have to be so that it won't bounce when dropped from some height h (I'm guessing it's proportional to h as well as other variables)?

Is the reaction force from the floor what destabilizes it and causes it to bounce? How does the surface area that comes in contact with the floor play a role? What other variables need to be considered?

THanks
 
Physics news on Phys.org
autodidude said:
How heavy does an object have to be so that it won't bounce when dropped from some height h
It's not about the weight, but the elasticity of the materials involved.
 
I'm assuming that when you say heavier its because its getting bigger, if so then you need to read up on is something called "the square cube law" Basically as something in increases in size its volume increases faster than its surface area and because the scaled up model is made of the same tiny atoms its overall properties change.

If you made a giant one mile radius rubber ball and dropped it on Earth its not going to bounce, chances are the shockwave of the impact would tear it apart. It would most likely look like dropping an egg.
 
Mmmm, I guess that or it gets denser...

Why is that? Does that have to do with the square cube law you mentioned (I'm about to look it up?). I feel like asking how the shockwaves would tear it apart (basically knocking atoms?) and if it's sound and stuff but I already have another thread going on about sound waves and shock waves lol
 
The rope is tied into the person (the load of 200 pounds) and the rope goes up from the person to a fixed pulley and back down to his hands. He hauls the rope to suspend himself in the air. What is the mechanical advantage of the system? The person will indeed only have to lift half of his body weight (roughly 100 pounds) because he now lessened the load by that same amount. This APPEARS to be a 2:1 because he can hold himself with half the force, but my question is: is that mechanical...
Some physics textbook writer told me that Newton's first law applies only on bodies that feel no interactions at all. He said that if a body is on rest or moves in constant velocity, there is no external force acting on it. But I have heard another form of the law that says the net force acting on a body must be zero. This means there is interactions involved after all. So which one is correct?
Thread 'Beam on an inclined plane'
Hello! I have a question regarding a beam on an inclined plane. I was considering a beam resting on two supports attached to an inclined plane. I was almost sure that the lower support must be more loaded. My imagination about this problem is shown in the picture below. Here is how I wrote the condition of equilibrium forces: $$ \begin{cases} F_{g\parallel}=F_{t1}+F_{t2}, \\ F_{g\perp}=F_{r1}+F_{r2} \end{cases}. $$ On the other hand...
Back
Top