Nailing Jello to a Tree: Uncovering Solutions

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Math Is Hard
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It's been said that this is impossible, but there must be a handful of legitimate solutions. I'm writing an essay about solving a challenging problem and I am thinking about using this as a lead in, offering a few strategies for a solution.

Any ideas? Freezing the Jello seems like it might work if one nailed it carefully.
 
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Does the jello have to be made according to directions?
You make jello into gummy bear consistency which could be nailed to a tree.
 
Cut down the tree, nail the Jello to the tree and drop the tree into a bottomless pit.

Place a wedge into the tree, nail small piece of Jello directly on top of the wedge.
 
Add lots and lots of gelatin to the Jello, and then nail it.
 
Math Is Hard said:
I'm assuming it's a free-for-all on how the jello is made or whether it's made at all, so these are good suggestions.

Yep, sometimes it's best to think INSIDE the box. :biggrin:

You could also put it in a Ziploc bag and nail the bag to the tree.

Or, you could make Jello shots, and invite an appropriate male/female mix of guests to the party...somebody might get...:rolleyes: Nevermind, that's not rated PG. :blushing:
 
Moonbear said:
Yep, sometimes it's best to think INSIDE the box. :biggrin:

You could also put it in a Ziploc bag and nail the bag to the tree.

That works, too!

I was also thinking about what DDMC wrote. I wonder if there is some antigravity or centrifugal force related solution?
 
Moonbear said:
Or, you could make Jello shots, and invite an appropriate male/female mix of guests to the party...somebody might get...:rolleyes: Nevermind, that's not rated PG. :blushing:

:blushing::biggrin:

That might be a bit racy for my class essay.
 
Stretching the usage of nail just a little...set the jello in a shot-glass with a dart inverted into it so that the jello sets around the fletching (the fins).

Or, for a simpler solution, make a standard 100ft by 100ft by 100ft cube of jello, cut down a smallish tree and nail it to the top of the cube. Then put yourself in the reference frame of the tree.
 
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Gokul43201 said:
Stretching the usage of nail just a little...set the jello in a shot-glass with a dart inverted into it so that the jello sets around the fletching (the fins).

Or, for a simpler solution, make a standard 100ft by 100ft by 100ft cube of jello, cut down a smallish tree and nail it to the top of the cube. Then put yourself in the reference frame of the tree.

Oh, very cool!
 
Just put the jello on the tree. Jello is nails.
 
Math Is Hard said:
That works, too!

I was also thinking about what DDMC wrote. I wonder if there is some antigravity or centrifugal force related solution?

Use an extremely dense nail? The local gravity will hold the jello in place.

You could also name the cat Jello...

or just write "Jello" on a piece of paper and nail it up.
 
Speaking of Jello, I had to mention this

The Extended Analog Computer (EAC) is a device which
computes using semi-conductive material, voltage gradients,
and logic arrays. The computational medium can be any semiconductive
material, such as black conductive foam, Jello
brand gelatin, or silicon. Voltage gradients are induced on the
conductive medium through the use of a series of sources and
sinks. Sources transmit electrical current to the medium by
producing an excess of electrons. These electrons, once on
the medium, tend to travel towards a sink. A sink provides a
path of least resistance for the electrons to exit the board. This
is either a ground or a negative voltage source.
As electrons flow across the medium from sources to sinks,
a voltage gradient is produced. This gradient can then be
sampled across the medium to produce a graph of the electrical
flows occurring on the conductive medium. Logic arrays are
used in order to modify the electrical currents being output to
the medium.
http://www.cs.indiana.edu/cgi-pub/cshue/research/techreport624-06.pdf

so you may be able to calculate a solution using a jello analog computer.
 
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Make up the jelly and set it in a small cylindrical container with the nail already in it so that it clings to the nail, then hit it into a tree.
 
I reckon you could actually nail jelly to a tree, with no modifications to the nail or jelly. You'd just have to be a bit careful.
 
Math Is Hard said:
That works, too!

I was also thinking about what DDMC wrote. I wonder if there is some antigravity or centrifugal force related solution?
Construct an enormous centrifuge and place a tree in it. Then get in with your Jello, hammer and nails and start the centrifuge. Then when you get going fast enough carefully nail the Jello to the tree.

Or hammer twenty nails in a circle leaving a hole in the middle where you place your Jello.
 
Make a small container of jello, and when it sets up, punch a small hole through the center of the jello and put the jello in the freezer. When it's frozen, you can nail it to a tree, and it ought to stay put until it thaws, which could be a long time coming in my climate.
 
Put the jello in a shallow tray and dehydrate it to a leathery texture, then nail it.

I liked gokul's idea of molding the jellow on the dart feathers, if you made it dense or dried it enough, it wouldn't slip off.
 
It also depends on how much Jello you intend to nail to the tree. Just passing the nail through the jello should pick up enough on the nail to embed within the tree on the nail, even if you'd need a microscope to find it.
 
Moonbear said:
It also depends on how much Jello you intend to nail to the tree. Just passing the nail through the jello should pick up enough on the nail to embed within the tree on the nail, even if you'd need a microscope to find it.

We'll call this the "CSI solution".
 
Math Is Hard said:
We'll call this the "CSI solution".

:smile: Indeed, as I suggested it, one of those CSI scenes went through my mind. We'd hear the "splat" sound as the nail goes through the jello, then a *crack* as the nail passes through the wood, and we'd watch the nail with wiggly globs on it come at us, as if we were inside the tree. :biggrin:
 
So, it seems to me, that the trick to finding new solutions is to identify the assumptions that appear to come with the initial problem. In this case it mostly concentrates on what one can do (or not do) to Jello recipe-wise and still have it be defined as Jello.
 
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Put a cube of jello on a narrow board and hold it against the tree. Use a nail with a large head and carefully push it through the jello until it contacts the tree. Now carefully drive the nail at at an upward angle so that the jello will be partially supported on the nail head. Stop hammering before you blast all hell out of it.:smile:

Nail guns are not recommended.

http://www.mazelumber.com/catalog/catalog.pl?page=PAGE27&group=PLH

Screwing jello to a tree with a large washer on the screw is even easier. You can even turn the screw with a cordless drill.

You can also freeze the jello then drill a small hole through it. Put the nail through the hole and hammer as needed.


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Gokul43201 said:
For an extra point, who can locate a PF post showing jello nailed to a tree?

Hint: Good thing Smurf and LYN aren't around very much.

http://scribalterror.blogs.com/scribal_terror/images/knoxjello.jpg

http://www.nitefallz.net/images/1/Image03.jpg

do I get at least half a point for jello nailed to a piece of plywood pic link?
(didn't feel like posting pic by direct pic)
 
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