Quote:
Originally Posted by sjastro
One that you are familiar with Craig.
Excluding a vertical straight wire, what should the shape of a wire be such that a bead released from one end of the wire will slide to the opposite end under gravity in the shortest period of time.
Common sense says the wire should be straight but the answer is in fact a cycloid.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cycloid
Regards
Steven |
I recall seeing something like this on "Why is it so?". They had a series of clear tubes finishing at a lower point to one side, each with a ball inside, one straight, one cycloid, one parabolic. All three balls were dropped simultaneously, with the one in the cycloid finishing first. Do we have a dilemma?
Loved that show!