- #1
alec_grunn
- 7
- 0
Member advised to use the homework template for posts in the homework sections of PF.
Hey guys, this is not really a h/w question but I thought this would be the best place to get a relevant answer.
So I was doing physics h/w last night and found that I could spin on my chair (a standard office swivel chair) by moving my arms in the opposite direction to the way I wanted to spin. Also, the chair was initially at rest.
This seems to violate the conservation of angular momentum unless:
A) I'm actually providing a torque by pushing off the air (although, I doubt this is the case since when I stand up and flap my arms about I hardly feel pushed in any way).
B) This is due to a conservation of angular momentum, since moving my arms in one direction is a change in angular momentum of one part of the system, so the rest of the system has to compensate. Sort of like how a cat can always land on its feet when dropped upside-down.
C) Or any other answer you can think of.
Cheers
So I was doing physics h/w last night and found that I could spin on my chair (a standard office swivel chair) by moving my arms in the opposite direction to the way I wanted to spin. Also, the chair was initially at rest.
This seems to violate the conservation of angular momentum unless:
A) I'm actually providing a torque by pushing off the air (although, I doubt this is the case since when I stand up and flap my arms about I hardly feel pushed in any way).
B) This is due to a conservation of angular momentum, since moving my arms in one direction is a change in angular momentum of one part of the system, so the rest of the system has to compensate. Sort of like how a cat can always land on its feet when dropped upside-down.
C) Or any other answer you can think of.
Cheers