Extreme Spin on Launched Ball

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(C)Properties of Heat and Matter - C+25: Fluid Dynamics

Two long wooden bat with a right angle trough in them are provided, one lined with sand paper and one not. If launched with sufficient speed a ball can be made to curve strongly to the right, left, or upward. The trough with sand paper is far more effective at putting a curve on the ball due to frictional effects between the ball and the surface. This can be used to demonstrate that spinning is created by the launch is the cause of the curve rather than the dynamics of the ball itself. This demo takes significant practice before using so give yourself time before class to experiment. Thanks to UCLA for inspiration for this demo.
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C+25+75
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Comments

James Little

Fri, 09/18/2015 - 15:17

Both pairs of paddles are stored in Pimentel in 35-2. I'd highly recommend throwing away the ping-pong balls after they're used in case they sustain enough damage that they wouldn't work well in the vacuum cannon.

James Little

Wed, 09/30/2015 - 11:07

Ive made a much lighter launcher, stored in the same place. It lacks a handle or a stopper for the ball but it can still be used with some practice and yields even better results; however there is only one, not one with and without sandpaper.