The wheels wouldn't turn at all,but the plane would move forwards and drag the treadmill round to match it. (So the treadmill in the animation is going the wrong way.)
(If the wheels and treadmill are both perfect, with no bearing friction and infinite friction between them.)
((If the wheels and treadmill are both perfect, with no bearing friction and infinite friction between them.)
Newington,
Mon 8 Jan 2007, 15:39,
archived)
It's not going the wrong way, it's illustrating a well known conundrum.Have a read of www.straightdope.com/columns/060203.html for a concise explanation.
(
Paster of Muppets is an incredible screen name,
Mon 8 Jan 2007, 16:35,
archived)
Yes, the conundrum is cool. I see that the plane definitely takes off.I also thought that if the wheels and treadmill are 'perfect' (which they don't need to be) then the wheels don't spin, but the treadmill does, and it spins the other way than shown in this picture.
...which I now think is wrong, because there's no reason for only one of them to spin. They'd both spin, and both in the direction you'd expect, and the plane would still take off.
[I changed my mind again. The treadmill goes the wrong way.]
Thanks to tapeworm for introducing me to this!
(...which I now think is wrong, because there's no reason for only one of them to spin. They'd both spin, and both in the direction you'd expect, and the plane would still take off.
[I changed my mind again. The treadmill goes the wrong way.]
Thanks to tapeworm for introducing me to this!
Newington,
Mon 8 Jan 2007, 17:20,
archived)