I've wondered for a long time ......

[Thankyou4calling]

If I sat on a dockside and put my feet on the back of a supertanker or 100,000 tonne cruise ship.

Could I ( being a powerfully built company director) build up enough force to get the ship moving?

Not at any great speed obviously but could I generate any movement.

I'm not likely to do it but I'm intrigued to know.

Thanks

[Itsallicanafford]

Depends if you've eaten your spinach

[Monkeylegend]

Only at high tide.

[marshalla]

. http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

[northwest monkey]

With this being the internet, I'm clearly completely unqualified to give you an opinion, but I will anyway and I reckon you could.

[Thankyou4calling]

I know the thread referred to above but I wanted to give this the airing it deserved.

Thankyou4calling :-)

[perdu]

Probably be better if there's two of you

I can spare Thursday next if you have a dock in mind, near the Midlands

It'd be nice to see if the replacement knees are up to a bit of real work

[Krikkit]

No, hth.

[98elise]

Of course you can its simple physics, it would however take a long time.

[oldcynic]

Only if you get the driver to let off the handbrake first

[Rawwr]

Is the supertanker on a conveyor belt?

[Thankyou4calling]

98elise said:

Of course you can its simple physics, it would however take a long time.

Thanks. Can you explain it for me please in lay mans terms.

[Hamish Finn]

Thankyou4calling said:

Thanks. Can you explain it for me please in lay mans terms.

Well the simple physics is that your very powerful (!) legs are exerting a force against the hull of the previously mentioned supertanker. So it will move, provided your legs are powerful enough to overcome the inertia. Only you can tell us that. As mentioned previously, the tide comes into it, as does the wind. Is it blowing towards you, or blowing away from you, or (heaven forbid) blowing sidey-ways?

Are the supertankers's engines running and controlling the screws and stabilisers? So much you haven't told us.

Another interesting one you could try is to fertilise a field with a fart.

Please report back.

[northwest monkey]

Thankyou4calling said:

98elise said:

Of course you can its simple physics, it would however take a long time.

Thanks. Can you explain it for me please in lay mans terms.

Well you see, 5 minutes is not a long time but 5 hours is a long time. That, my son is "a long time" explained in laymans terms.

Just think of me as a slightly more mobile Steven Hawkins & you're pretty much there.

[marshalla]

northwest monkey said:

Just think of me as a slightly more mobile Steven Hawkins & you're pretty much there.

OK Steve,


http://www.amnestyusa.org/about-us/who-we-are/exec...

[northwest monkey]

marshalla said:

northwest monkey said:

Just think of me as a slightly more mobile Steven Hawkins & you're pretty much there.

OK Steve,


http://www.amnestyusa.org/about-us/who-we-are/exec...

And maybe slightly less black.

[Impasse]

It's a thought, that's for sure. Whenever I've sat on the edge of the dock I can't say I've even considered it. I just watch the tide roll away.

[EliseNick]

Yes, you can. This is in obvious contrast to, say, a large lump of rock lying on the floor. This is because there is a difference in the nature of friction at the solid-solid interface and the solid-liquid interface. In the case of the rock, there is static friction, which you have to overcome to get the thing moving, and dynamic friction, which acts against any motion present. In the case of the boat, there is no static friction, so the smallest of forces will start it moving. You don't have to brace your shoulders to it/get more directorships/throw Red Bull about, you could blow gently on it and it would still start moving a little.Then, once it is moving, drag sets in, which acts rather like the dynamic friction.

[Monkeylegend]

It might help if you pulled the anchor.

[perdu]

I'm NOT messing with it if the anchor is still set

I don't think I have Thursday free after all, sorry




Tuesday week?