ClassX Video Lessons Youtube Channel SmarterEveryDay 1,074 MPH BASEBALL vs. 1 Gallon of Mayonnaise – Smarter Every Day 264
Welcome to an exciting adventure where science meets fun! We built a supersonic baseball cannon that can launch baseballs faster than the speed of sound. Our goal was to see if we could make a baseball travel at 1,050 miles per hour, which is Mach 1.38. Now, we’re exploring how to use this amazing tool for more cool experiments on Smarter Every Day.
Let’s dive into some science. Imagine a graph showing how drag force changes with velocity for a smooth sphere. As the baseball speeds up, the drag increases, then suddenly drops, and rises again as it goes even faster. With our cannon, we’re mostly on the fast side of this curve, so there’s a lot to learn about what happens at these high speeds.
We want to understand how this cannon works. This involves looking at pressure and velocity. We need to figure out the right amount of pressure to use in the pressure vessel and how much vacuum to create in the barrel. We’ll record all the data to analyze later.
We’ve rented some high-speed cameras, including one that captures an incredible 36,000 frames per second. We also have a 4K high-speed camera and others to track the baseball’s speed as it zooms toward the target.
For our targets, we have some fun items to hit, like five pounds of silly putty and cake sprinkles, thanks to suggestions from our supporters. We also have a bore sight tool to help us aim accurately.
We’re ready for our first shot after setting everything up. We’ll check the whole system to make sure it’s working perfectly. We’re starting with 300 PSI and a vacuum of about -7.2 PSI.
The first shot was a success! We recorded the baseball traveling at 917 miles per hour. We’re thrilled with the data we collected. Next, we’ll fire again without a vacuum in the barrel to see how it affects the speed.
After some calculations, we found the baseball’s speed dropped to 831 miles per hour, which helps us understand the drag coefficient. We’re gathering more data to fully understand the drag on a baseball.
Next, we’re shooting at the sprinkles, as suggested by one of our patrons. We’re all set, and the pressure is building up. When we fire, we’ll see how the baseball interacts with the sprinkles.
The shot was successful, and we saw some interesting results. The sprinkles reacted to the baseball, creating a unique effect. We’re excited to analyze the data further.
Then, we decided to shoot a jar of mayonnaise. After setting everything up again, we fired, and the results were quite messy but visually stunning. We captured amazing footage of the shockwave created by the impact.
Throughout this process, we’re collecting data and learning about the physics involved. We’re excited to continue experimenting and gathering more insights.
This episode is sponsored by Audible, and I want to share a book that means a lot to me: “The Screwtape Letters” by C.S. Lewis. It’s a fascinating read, and I encourage you to check it out.
We’ve only scratched the surface with our data points, and there’s more to come. If you’d like to see more, consider subscribing. Thank you for your support, and remember to keep getting smarter every day!
Imagine you are in charge of launching a baseball at supersonic speeds. Use a physics simulation tool to experiment with different pressures and vacuums in the cannon. Record your results and compare them to the data from the article. Discuss how changes in pressure affect the speed and drag of the baseball.
Create a graph that shows how drag force changes with velocity for a smooth sphere, similar to the baseball in the article. Use data points from the article to plot the graph. Analyze the graph to understand the relationship between speed and drag, and present your findings to the class.
Design a simple experiment using a smartphone camera to capture high-speed footage of a moving object, like a bouncing ball. Compare your footage with the high-speed camera results from the article. Discuss the importance of high-speed cameras in understanding fast-moving phenomena.
Choose a fun target, like silly putty or sprinkles, and predict how a fast-moving object would interact with it. Conduct a safe experiment using a small projectile and your chosen target. Record the results and compare them to the interactions described in the article.
Research the concept of shockwaves and how they are created by supersonic objects. Create a presentation or poster that explains shockwaves, using the mayonnaise experiment from the article as an example. Share your findings with the class and discuss the visual effects captured in high-speed footage.
Here’s a sanitized version of the transcript, removing any inappropriate or unnecessary content while maintaining the essence of the discussion:
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This is a supersonic baseball cannon we built because it’s awesome and can make baseballs go supersonic. We initially just wanted to see if we could make a baseball go past the speed of sound, and we did—1050 miles an hour, Mach 1.38. Now it’s time to figure out how to use this as a tool because I want to do a lot of cool stuff with it here on Smarter Every Day.
Let’s have a brief discussion. This is a graph of drag force versus velocity for a smooth sphere. As the ball goes faster, the drag increases, and at some point, it drops off and then ramps up again as you go faster. With our supersonic baseball cannon, we spend a lot of time on this side of the curve, so we don’t really know what happens on the other side.
We’re going to characterize this thing, which means figuring out how it works. This graph shows pressure and velocity, and I want to determine how much pressure to put in the pressure vessel and how much vacuum to pull in the vacuum barrel. We’ll record all the data later.
I’ve rented high-speed cameras, including a super fast one that captures 36,000 frames per second. We have another 4K high-speed camera and a few others set up to track the baseball’s velocity over time until it reaches the target.
For our target effects, we have some interesting items to hit, including five pounds of silly putty and cake sprinkles, suggested by our patrons. We also have a bore sight tool to help us aim accurately.
The goal is to shoot the cannon, get the velocities as a function of pressure, and see what happens to baseballs in different aerodynamic regimes. We’ll aim at our target and see if we can hit it.
After setting everything up, we’re ready for our first shot. We’ll do a checkout of the whole system, making sure everything is functioning correctly. We’re starting with 300 PSI and a vacuum of about -7.2 PSI.
The first shot was successful, and we recorded the baseball traveling at 917 miles an hour. We’re excited about the data we collected. Now, we’ll fire again with no vacuum in the barrel to see how it affects the velocity.
After some calculations, we found that the baseball’s speed dropped to 831 miles an hour, allowing us to define the drag coefficient. We’re trying to gather more data to understand the complete drag of a baseball.
Next, we’re going to shoot at the sprinkles, as suggested by one of our patrons. We’re all set, and the pressure is building up. When we fire, we’ll see how the baseball interacts with the sprinkles.
The shot was successful, and we observed some interesting results. The sprinkles were affected by the baseball, creating a unique outcome. We’re excited to analyze the data further.
Next, we decided to shoot a jar of mayonnaise. After setting everything up again, we fired, and the results were quite messy but visually stunning. We captured some amazing footage of the shockwave created by the impact.
Throughout this process, we’re collecting data and learning about the physics involved. We’re excited to continue experimenting and gathering more insights.
This episode is sponsored by Audible, and I want to share a book that means a lot to me: “The Screwtape Letters” by C.S. Lewis. It’s a fascinating read, and I encourage you to check it out.
We’ve only scratched the surface with our data points, and there’s more to come. If you’d like to see more, consider subscribing. Thank you for your support, and remember to keep getting smarter every day!
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This version maintains the core content while ensuring it’s appropriate for all audiences.
Baseball – A spherical object used in the sport of baseball, often used in physics to study projectile motion. – In physics class, we calculated the trajectory of a baseball when it is hit at different angles.
Cannon – A large gun that uses explosive force to launch projectiles, often used in physics to demonstrate principles of motion and force. – The physics teacher used a small cannon to show how different angles affect the range of a projectile.
Pressure – The force exerted per unit area on the surface of an object. – We learned that the pressure inside a balloon increases as more air is pumped into it.
Velocity – The speed of an object in a specific direction. – The velocity of the car was measured to determine how quickly it could reach the finish line.
Drag – The resistance force caused by the motion of a body through a fluid, such as air or water. – Engineers design cars to minimize drag and improve fuel efficiency.
Speed – The rate at which an object covers distance. – The speed of the roller coaster was calculated to ensure it was safe for passengers.
Vacuum – A space devoid of matter, where there is no air or other gases. – In a vacuum, a feather and a hammer will fall at the same rate due to the absence of air resistance.
Data – Information collected during experiments or observations, used to analyze and draw conclusions. – The students recorded data from their experiments to create graphs and identify patterns.
Experiments – Scientific procedures undertaken to test a hypothesis and observe outcomes. – Conducting experiments in the lab helped us understand the principles of electricity.
Physics – The branch of science concerned with the nature and properties of matter and energy. – Physics helps us understand how the universe behaves, from the smallest particles to the largest galaxies.
