The Physics of Baseball Pitches
Five ounces of cork, yarn and leather is all it takes to produce high-velocity, mind-blowing physics. The movement of a baseball through the air is due to three things: The pitcher’s arm (moving it forward), gravity (moving it down), and air resistance from the spinning seams (which causes side-to-side, sinking and “rising” motion).
Gravity will always pull a pitch down as it travels to the plate, but back and side spin create areas of high pressure on one side of the ball (“The Magnus Effect”, named for its discoverer). This creates a force that pushes the ball in the opposite direction, whether it be sideways (likea slider), down (a sinker), or causing it to sink more slowly than normal (the “rising” pitch illusion).
Check out:
- The physics behind 7 famous baseball pitches
- All about The Magnus Effect
- A 1959 paper studying the aerodynamics of a pitched baseball (where they wind tunnel shot above came from).
- A Science Channel video all about the physics of pitching
- For the truly curious, a REALLY in-depth and technical look into the physics of moving baseballs
Some believe that current pitchers have reached the biomechanical limits for pitch velocity and movement. When you consider the sheer neuromuscular perfection seen in this jaw-dropping overlaid GIF of the Rangers’ Yu Darvish, I can see how that might appear to be the case (via Reddit):
Perhaps more than in any other sport, baseball pitchers embody the astonishing combination of precision and power in the heart of our motor neurons: Producing unbelievable force and grace, with nearly identical repetition, a couple hundred times a week.
In case you haven’t watched it yet, here’s the Arrested Development season 4 sneak peak.
Is it May 26 yet?
Have you seen gallon smashing yet? Because if you haven’t, you need to.
I declare this as DUMB
Such a waste of milk. Yet I couldn’t stop laughing. Watch the video!
Dumb and being an asshole. People have to clean the isle, ruining store property, and general douchebaggery.
(Reblogged from meme4u)
Some additional gratuitous shots of the 10th Anniversary Champagne Robusto by Perdomo. Wonderfully creamy and delicious. As noted before the wrapper tore, but the cigar stayed together extremely well.
Can we just observe when he says “communicate their feelings and just enjoy each other’s company” what we see is people just staring on their phones. No one is interacting with another person.
Aren’t we mindless zombies already?
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Huge metaphorso good. this movie
this movie had so many metaphors
To the first comment: ah-DOY! That’s the entire point.
Also, how is this a metaphor? They’re flat-out saying it.
They *are* enjoying each other’s company, but “each other” is a person somewhere else in the world thanks to those devices.
