Another accident on Morse
 

You're kidding, right?

Have you even read your posts? Condescending and insulting...to anybody reading them.

I wish my former students had you guys enthusiasm.....great debate. Sadly Mythbusters is kaput after this season

kathy and al: I appreciate your point of view. However perhaps if you were introduced to the guy (cart driver) who was broadsided by a car striking his leg and causing him months in the hospital and more months in rehabilitation you might change your mind about who should have the right of way (row)

Personal Best Regards:

Hi suesiegel: Speed is a catchall for all accidents but it doesn't explain inattention, misjudgments distractions ,etc. I have not been around a cart going 30mph however let's suppose a cart is maintaining that speed in a diamond lane when a car comes along drifting into the carts lane striking the cat driver. Is speed the cause?

Yep your right

Nope, just to you because you act like a know it all when you are actually wrong. Aren't you the one who said "go read a physics book"? How rude and condescending it that ? Well it turns out you are wrong.

so, a cart of mass 1 going at speed 20 hitting a brick wall dissipates kinetic energy of 0.5 x 1 x 20 x 20 = 200 units

whereas a cart of mass 1 going at 40 hitting a brick wall dissipates kinetic energy of 0.5 x 1 x 40 x 40 = 800 units

double the speed, and you quadruple the kinetic energy because of the squaring

assuming the two carts are of equal mass and hit head on, the combined dissipated kinetic energy is 200 + 200 = 400 units

it does not matter whether a cart hits another cart head on or a wall - if it is brought to an immediate stop then the kinetic energy dissipated per cart is the same (200 units)

so two carts hitting each other head on, each doing 20, dissipates only half the kinetic energy (400 units) of one cart hitting a wall at 40 (800 units)

"I will do the mathematical proof but I am not sure anyone will follow it." - your words. Yeah...that's not condescending and insulting at all.

And I'm only wrong in your mind. I know it's futile to reply, but I will anyway. You are talking about the net damage done in two totally different scenarios. The net damage done may well be roughly the same in both. Heck, I'm a big fan of Mythbusters, and I don't see anything in there that I disagree with. I am simply saying that relative speed does matter...a lot!

Why don't you comment on the thought problem I posted earlier...

Scenario 1 - A solid wall, block, whatever is moving along at 20 MPH and hits a stationary wall.
Scenario 2 - Two solid walls, blocks, whatever are moving toward each other, each going 20 MPH, and collide.

Are the collisions identical in every respect? Of course not. There is much more energy in Scenario 2. I've said nothing that conflicts with this in any of my posts. I'm only stating that two vehicles colliding at 20 MPH is not identical to a vehicle traveling at 20 MPH hitting a stationary wall, even if the net damage is similar.

What the heck is going on here?

Occum's razor now applies. Time out Newtonians :popcorn:

Law of the bigger unit :boxing2:

For the record, you stated "go read a physics book" first, but I digress.

In reality, you replied to "Rapscallion St Croix's" post that he was incorrect when he was exactly right. I tried to give you the chance to understand the point by clearly stating the assumptions. Go back and read your post where you claim "Rapscallion St Croix's" post is wrong. Nobody claimed they are "identical", only that two carts hitting each other at 20 MPH is equivalent to a cart hitting a wall at 20 MPH in terms of damage to the cart, not 40 MPH as was suggested in the post that "Rapscallion St Croix" originally responded to. You can try to spin this anyway you want but you clearly didn't understand the physics.

You can keep yammering on but I have other things to do.

Yeah...the only claim was that they are "equivalent". You have resorted to semantics to cover your lack of understanding of the physics.

Everything I said in the very post you cite is true. No spin required.

You should read post #87, which has the analysis correct and is exactly what "Rapscallion St Croix" said, and you claimed was wrong. Keep on spinning, baby!

Bizarro World!

Two cars, two carts going xx mph results in some very serious injuries any way you cut it; albeit the police and insurance people would be interested in the speed of each vehicle.