TSUNAMI!

There was a tsunami warning this weekend (even though there wasn't really any damage). During the scare, one of the news stations said that the boats in the harbor should sail out until after the tsunami passed. The reason being is that the wave wouldn't break out in the ocean, so the boats would only experience a water level rise, not a TIDAL WAVE!!! Remeber when we studied waves and oscillation? Well this is kind of like that, except it was only a couple big waves, but just imagine it like the rope we used...if you picked a point on the rope and put it in oscillation, that point would just move up and down. A breaking wave would be more like oscillating a whip, and since one side is unsecured, the point would be snapped back and forth. So I guess that physics saved the day for the boat-owners of Hawaii. Yay!

Wait, I remembered that since the tsunami is just a super huge wave, the through before the crest is the reason the water recceddes before the big wave comes. You know what I'm saying.

If this picture don't cut it, check out the advertiser or star bulletin.

Volleyball

You know what has a ton of physics involved? Volleyball. I'm just going to list all the ways volleyball has physics. First, the serve has a collision, and there are hundreds of collisions between ball a arm in volleyball, so whenever the ball is hit there is a collision. The ball also travels in projectile motion, especially on the serve and digs. When the setter sets the ball, it has to do with a collision, but I forget what the term was, but there is more time in contact so the ball floats right up to the hitter. The hitter applies a lot of force by smacking that ball, so it has great accleration. From there it either gets dug by some dude, and he can leave his arms still, so the collision is more like a reflection, and the ball will deflect with less than the initial speed. But if that dude swings his arms at the ball, they are both moving, and with the ball moving fast, after contact it will go shooting off. That's why volleyball players gotta keep their platforms straight. Just ask Alex. And blocking is just like digging except vertically at the net. Was that 150 words yet? jeez. Enjoy these pictures that totally explain it all.

No blog this week

I swear that doc said we don't need to write a blog this week because its a no homework weekend. So if I was going to write one it would be about volleyball, but I'm not going to, and if I was supposed to it's not my fault! It's Tracy's cuz he said so!

Vancouver 2010

Anybody ever watch "The Colbert Report"? Well I do. Anyways, the Winter Olympics started in Vancouver this week, and most of the competitions have something to do with snow or ice or something of that nature. Because of that, the friction on the surface of whatever the athletes are on is very low, so they have skis or boards to fly down the slopes, or skates in bobsledding or speedskating. Since they are low friction, it takes a lot of technique and work to get good at winter games. Anyways, back to Stephen Colbert. If you didn't know he sponsored the US speedskating team on his show, and highlighted some of the competitions,like skeleton racing. In his words "If you want to experience skeleton, lie on the sidewalk and crap your pants." It is like a cross between bobsleding and downhill luge. Anyways, from starting at the top of the track, and sliding down on the ice, they reach high speeds and gain a lot of momentum. With all those turns, they need to control the centrifugal force on the turns. I'm not sure how they slow down at the end, but they do. Enclosed is a picture of Stephen Colbert, you can check out more at http://www.colbertnation.com/