© 2002 - 2004 www.thesciencist.org
The Sciencist
A peer-reviewed journal of
scientific discovery
|
| Frictional
Coefficients and their Influence on Planetary Rotation
Jakob Strømmen
The world
population has grown considerably in the last
100 years, and because of that vehicle production
is at an all time high. Much “research”
has been performed regarding the environmental
impact of these vehicles. Unfortunately the area
of friction has remained virtually unexamined,
perhaps dangerously so. This study inspects the
correlation between friction and the rotation
of the Earth and comes to a surprising and frightening
conclusion: we are at most a year away from the
end of the world.
[This
paper is also available in PDF format]
Introduction
For thousands of years, the world
has depended on the wheel to get us through our
daily life. Wheels have been gaining in popularity
since their invention in prehistoric times (Hart,
1985, 1988). At present, practically every facet
of life is dependent on the use of wheels. However,
with this reliance comes a greater danger than the
world has ever faced.
Wheels use the principle of friction
to propel a vehicle in a fixed direction. The advent
of vulcanized rubber has created a wheel capable
of generating more friction than any wheel in history.
Newton’s third law states that for every action
there is an equal and opposite reaction. This means
that to balance the direction of movement of the
vehicle, there is an equally strong force along
the ground in the opposite direction. Since vehicles
are moving faster than ever, the equal and opposite
force is getting stronger than ever. Add to this
an increasing number of vehicles traversing the
globe, and we are on the brink of a disaster of
Dante’s Peakian proportions.
In theory, if enough vehicles
travel in the same direction at the same time, a
state of critical mass will be reached. At this
point one of the following three things could occur.
If too many vehicles are moving against the Earth’s
rotation, the combined friction resulting from all
of those wheels could potentially cause the rotation
of the Earth to speed up, thereby breaking us free
of gravity and throwing us into space, not unlike
a colony of ants resting on an active yo-yo. In
contrast, if too many vehicles were to move with
the Earth’s rotation, the friction might slow,
and possibly stop, the rotation, leading to gyroscopic
distress. This would cause the relative stability
of the Earth to be compromised and would bring a
cease to the procession of night and day. Thirdly,
if too many vehicles move north or south, the friction
could cause the earth to tilt on its axis, thereby
flipping the seasons. The effect of this on bird
migration and seasonal novelty production alone
would be catastrophic.
This study, commissioned by forward
thinking APSO science-minded professional Rev. Paulo
Robvolli (Italy), Director-General of the Sixth
APSO Working Group on Rotation, Friction and Centripetal/Centrifugal
Forces, will attempt to determine where the greatest
danger lies, what vehicles pose the greatest threat,
and how long we have until disaster strikes.
Method
Testing this theory proved to
be a difficult prospect. The cost and difficulty
of measuring the actual rotation of the earth, coupled
with the need for an immediate and accurate answer,
necessitated an innovative approach to the problem.
The resulting experiment is both simple and deep
in theoretical underpinnings. The force generated
by one average wheel will be calculated on a variety
of surfaces. Then, by determining the number of
wheels in the world, a simple calculation will provide
the total possible force exerted by all the wheels
in the world. After this, directed by the modern
principle of subtraction, it is a simple matter
to determine how many wheels need to be moving at
the same time to effect the rotation of the earth.
To determine the average force
from one wheel, four vehicles were tested and the
average of the four was used (Strømmen, 2003).
These vehicles were: a remote-controlled dune buggy,
a standard 18-speed mountain bike, a suped-up 1982
Honda Civic, and a regulation monster truck named
“Missy.” Subjects were required to start
from a complete stop on a variety of materials.
Force along the ground (in kg•km/h), and displacement
of the material (in cubic centimetres) were measured
and divided by the number of wheels. Results are
summarized in tables 1 and 2.
Results
Results fall into two categories:
loose materials and solid materials. Loose materials
(gravel, topsoil, etc.) showed the greatest displacement,
and the lowest force. They will slide along the
earth as there is little attachment between the
material and the earth itself. This functions as
a natural defence mechanism for the earth, protecting
it from natural enemies such as wind and water.
Clearly loose materials provide a buffer between
the wheels and the earth, reducing the danger of
effecting rotation considerably.
More dangerous by far are solid
materials. Concrete showed no measurable displacement
and the greatest amount of force. There is no other
option but to conclude that this easily represents
the greatest threat to our continued survival. Concrete
roads are firmly fastened to the earth and topical
forces exerted on that concrete will be transferred
through the concrete to the Earth itself. This means
that all of the force from the wheel is actually
acting on the earth and not on the material.
As a reliable estimate there are
13.2 billion wheels in the world. This is based
on the fact that there is one four-wheeled vehicle
for every person in the world (Smythe, 1954). This
will not yield an accurate world wheel count however,
as certain anomalies must be accounted for. We must
subtract the number of motorcycles, add the number
of semis, and then add the number of service vehicles
to arrive at the final result (formula 1). Therefore,
as there are 6.3 billion people in the world, motorcycles
have 2 wheels, semis have 18, and miscellaneous
service vehicles average out to 5 wheels each, following
formula 1 through gives us the result of 13.2 billion
wheels in the world. All we need to do then is examine
the average force from one wheel (table 1) and then
extrapolate to 13.2 billion wheels.
Of course not all of these wheels
will be moving at the same time. Indeed, this fact
is the only reason that the coming disaster has
not already happened. Current sleep research indicates
that people sleep an average of seven hours out
of every twenty-four (Fred, 2003). This leaves 17
hours of the day in which a vehicle may be operated.
By subtracting time spent eating (ignoring drive-through
meals), and adjusting for other factors we are left
with a total of 6 hours per day of driving time
(formula 2).
Thus, there are 6 hours of every
day in which wheels will be operated. This means
that at any given time, one-fourth of all the wheels
in the world (3.3 billion) will be moving. Research
shows that it takes a phenomenal amount of force
to affect the rotation of something as large as
the Earth (Various Science Fiction Movies, 1945–1986).
By rough estimate this number is 100 billion kg•km/h.
If we multiply the average force generated by one
wheel by the number of wheels moving on the Earth
at any given time we arrive at 105.6 billion kg•km/h.
Clearly the only thing saving us from disaster is
the fact that not all vehicles travel in the same
direction at the same time. Unfortunately, calculating
the probability that 3 billion wheels will travel
in the same direction is beyond the scope of this
experiment.
Conclusions
The results of this study are
frightening to say the least. Clearly we are teetering
on the brink of disaster. I can only hope that this
message reaches the appropriate authorities in time.
At the current pace, disaster could strike as early
as January 2004, and is inevitable by June 2005.
Despite this chilling vision of
things to come, there is some hope. There are steps
which can be taken to stave off destruction, but
they must be taken immediately. In short, we need
to reduce the number of wheels on the roads. As
shown above, we are already on the brink of disaster.
Reducing the number of wheels on the road will have
a clear and immediate impact on the only number
that matters: the probability of destruction. The
automotive industry is historically slow to adopt
change (History, all years), but a shift in design
towards tracked vehicles (not tested here) would
likely yield a dramatic improvement in the situation.
As well as reducing the number
of wheels, the rate of urbanization needs to be
slowed, if not stopped entirely. As proven in this
study, gravel roads provide a buffer between the
wheel and the earth. Urbanization is leading to
more and more paved roads, which increases the danger
exponentially. If we return to only gravel roads,
the force being generated by the current number
of wheels will drop dramatically. This means that
it will require more vehicles travelling in the
same direction to affect a change. Critics will
argue that this may result in more accidents (Critics,
2005), however I believe this is a small price to
pay for our continued existence here on Earth.
References
Critics. (2005). Europe.
Smythe, Q. (1954). Fun Facts. Dublin Ireland:
Blarney Press.
Fred. (2003). 214 43rd St. East.
Hart, J. (1985). B.C. Big Wheel. New York,
NY: Ballantine Books.
Hart, J. (1988). B.C. Rides Again. New
York, NY: Ballantine Books.
History. (All Years). United States.
Strømmen, J. (2003). The rule of three:
A technical application of the new math. Saskatoon,
Canada: The Sciencist.
Various Science Fiction Movies (1945 – 1986).
Hollywood, CA.
|
|
