The hula hoop remains a staple of modern American culture since the 1950sbut people around the world They have been participating in similar activities for thousands of years. However, the physics behind maintaining perfect spin remains a mystery. Is it something that anyone can achieve with enough time and effort, or is there a natural hula hooper among us? Researchers recently investigated these dynamics using a specially designed spinning robot, and the results provided unprecedented insight into the perfect spin.
“Seemingly simple toys and games often contain surprisingly subtle physics and mathematics,” the team from New York University’s Institute of Applied Mathematics said. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on monday. “Hula hoops include these and other issues associated with rotating contact points on the body surface, and we expect that the hula hoop itself is actuated by rotational motion and that its shape strongly influences the dynamics of the hoop. .”
“We were surprised that an activity as popular, fun, and healthy as hula-hooping was not even understood at the level of basic physics,” said Leif, associate professor of mathematics at New York University and senior study author.・Mr. Ristoloff says: stated in an accompanying statement on Thursday.
To see how different body types would affect the hula hoop, Ristoroff and his team 3D printed several shapes, including a light bulb, an hourglass, a rectangle, and other shapes roughly one-tenth the size of a human. The model was placed on a robot gyrator. Next, they fired a 6-inch-wide hoop over the shape while recording its performance on high-speed video. After analyzing the results, the researchers found that raising and moving a hula hoop can be accomplished by any “body type” model.
“In all cases, you can set up a motion that will successfully rotate the hoop around your body without any special effort,” Ristoroff said.
However, keeping the hoop going is another matter. A more curvaceous body is often the key to sustaining spins for long periods of time. More specifically, it’s a form that includes sloping “hips” that allow for an angle to press the hoop, and a “waist” that is sufficient to support the hoop against gravity.
“People have different body shapes, and some have sloping or curved features in their hips and hips, while others do not,” Ristoroff explained. “Our findings may explain why some people are born hoopers, while others have to work extra hard.”
But the results of the experiment go far beyond playground entertainment strategies. Ristoloff and his team believe that the complex and subtle interplay of mathematics and physics in hula hoops could help inspire engineering projects, especially robotics used in industrial processing and manufacturing. .
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