Street Science (2017–…): Season 1, Episode 7 - Curve Your Enthusiasm - full transcript

♪♪

HAVE YOU EVER THROWN A CURVEBALL BEFORE?

I HEAR THAT'S ACTUALLY
EXTREMELY CHALLENGING.

Delaney: CAN PHYSICS
DELIVER A WINNING STRIKEOUT?

HIGH PRESSURE WITH THE LOW PRESSURE

THAT GIVES THE BREAK.

WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO GET EXPLOSIVE ENERGY

FROM A BASKETBALL...

THERE'S ONLY ONE WAY TO FIND OUT.

THREE... TWO... ONE.

All: WHOA!



Delaney: ...AND CAN THE LAWS OF MOTION

THROW A QUARTERBACK OFF HIS GAME?

HE WON'T KNOW WHAT HIT HIM.

MY NAME IS KEVIN DELANEY.

I'VE BEEN SHOWING OFF THE
MAGIC OF SCIENCE FOR YEARS,

EVERYWHERE FROM MUSEUMS
TO LATE-NIGHT TALK SHOWS.

SCIENCE IS ALL AROUND US,
AND I WANT THE WORLD TO SEE IT,

SO I'M COMBINING EVERYDAY ELEMENTS

IN WAYS THAT WILL BLOW YOUR MIND.

[ SCREAMING ]

I'VE GOT A TEAM OF EXPERTS
AND HIGH-TECH CAMERAS

THAT WILL REVEAL THE
SCIENCE THAT SURROUNDS US

IN WAYS YOU'VE NEVER SEEN BEFORE.

I'M TAKING SCIENCE TO THE STREETS.



THIS IS "STREET SCIENCE."

I CAN'T LEGALLY RECOMMEND
BREAKING ANY LAWS,

BUT IT'S FUN TO TEST THEM WHEN
IT COMES TO THE LAWS OF MOTION.

SO WE'RE HEADING TO TROPICANA FIELD,

THE DOMED BASEBALL STADIUM
IN SAINT PETERSBURG, FLORIDA,

WHICH SOMETIMES DOUBLES
AS A FOOTBALL FIELD.

WE'RE GONNA PLAY A ROUND
WITH FORCE AND AIR FLOW...

IN OTHER WORDS, CURVEBALLS.

THIS PLACE IS HUGE.

YEP, IT'S A BIG ROOM.

VERY COOL. VERY, VERY COOL.

SO WHAT BRINGS US HERE TODAY, KEVIN?

BASEBALL, MAN. IT'S A BASEBALL STADIUM.

[ Chuckling ] TRUE THAT.

HAVE YOU EVER THROWN A CURVEBALL BEFORE?

YOU KNOW, I HAVE NEVER
THROWN A CURVEBALL BEFORE.

I HEAR THAT'S ACTUALLY
EXTREMELY CHALLENGING.

THERE'S A LOT OF PHYSICS INVOLVED.

I FEEL LIKE THERE'S SOMEBODY HERE

WHO PROBABLY KNOWS
SOMETHING ABOUT BASEBALL,

SO IT'S A GOOD PLACE TO START.

WORD. I CAN DIG IT.

ALL RIGHT, LET'S GO.

WE'RE MEETING PITCHER SERGIO PEREZ,

ONCE A SECOND-ROUND DRAFT
PICK WITH THE HOUSTON ASTROS.

HIS FASTBALL CLOCKS
IN AT 97 MILES PER HOUR.

BUT WE WANT TO KNOW WHAT
DOES HE PUT INTO HIS CURVEBALL?

ALL RIGHT, SERGIO. THANKS,
MAN, FOR HELPING ME OUT.

I APPRECIATE IT. NO PROBLEM.

SO, CAN YOU SHOW ME A CURVEBALL?

DEFINITELY. SWEET.

♪♪

WHEN PITCHERS THROW CURVEBALLS,

THEY PUT TOPSPIN ON THE BASEBALL
THAT CREATES A DOWNWARD FORCE,

AND IN THE LAST FEW
INCHES, THE BALL DIVES DOWN

A LOT FASTER THAN THE HITTER MIGHT EXPECT.

ALL RIGHT, SO WHAT'S YOUR TECHNIQUE?

WHEN I PULL DOWN WITH MY FINGERS,

THAT'S THE PRESSURE, HIGH PRESSURE

WITH THE LOW PRESSURE,
THAT GIVES THE BREAK.

OKAY, SO AS IT'S MOVING THROUGH THE AIR,

YOU WANT THE AIR MOVING OVER IT

AS IT'S SPINNING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION

SO YOU CAN GET THAT DROP.

THAT'S WHAT CAUSES THAT BREAK.

CALLED THE MAGNUS EFFECT.

CORRECT, US BASEBALL PLAYERS
DON'T REALLY UNDERSTAND THAT.

WE JUST KNOW MORE SPIN, MORE BREAK.

WELL, WHEN YOU'RE DESCRIBING
HOW YOU THROW A CURVEBALL,

YOU'RE DESCRIBING IT EXACTLY.

SO, IT'S AN AREA OF LOW
PRESSURE AND HIGH PRESSURE

THAT ARE CREATED THAT GIVES IT LIFT

AND THEN, A LITTLE BIT OF DRAG.

THE MAGNUS EFFECT OCCURS WHEN A BALL SPINS.

IT GENERATES MORE PRESSURE
ON ONE SIDE THAN THE OTHER SIDE.

THIS PRESSURE DIFFERENTIAL

CAUSES THE BALL TO DROP DOWNWARD IN FLIGHT.

WHEN A BALL IS THROWN,
THE BEHAVIOR OF THE BALL

IS DETERMINED BY NEWTON'S LAWS OF MOTION.

FROM NEWTON'S FIRST LAW OF MOTION,

THE MOVING BALL WILL STAY
IN MOTION IN A STRAIGHT LINE

UNLESS ACTED UPON BY AN EXTERNAL FORCE.

THE FASTER SERGIO SPINS THE BALL,

THE MORE THE BALL WILL CURVE AND, LIKELY,

THE MORE STRIKEOUTS HE'LL THROW.

ALL RIGHT, GUYS. SO, SERGIO,

THANKS VERY MUCH FOR
SHOWING ME ALL THOSE PITCHES.

YOU'VE GOT A MEAN CURVEBALL.

NO PROBLEM. THANK YOU.

SO, ONE OF THE THINGS WE WERE TALKING ABOUT

IS THE MAGNUS EFFECT,

WHICH IS THE WAY AIR FLOWS

OVER A SPINNING OBJECT LIKE...

A SPINNING ROUND OBJECT...
LIKE A SPHERE OR A CYLINDER.

IT'S NOT JUST BASEBALL PLAYERS

THAT TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE MAGNUS EFFECT

TO BEND THE FLIGHT OF A BALL.

THE EFFECT CAN APPLY IN ANY DIRECTION.

TENNIS PLAYERS USE
TOPSPIN TO FORCE THEIR SHOTS

TO DROP TO THE COURT SOONER.

GOLFERS USE BACKSPIN
TO GIVE A BALL VERTICAL LIFT

AND FLY FURTHER.

AND SOCCER PLAYERS USE SIDESPIN

TO PULL THE BALL AROUND THE GOALIE.

IT'S A LITTLE BIT TOUGH TO
WATCH ON A BASEBALL UP CLOSE.

SO, I WANT TO SEE IF THERE'S A
BETTER WAY TO VISUALIZE THIS.

BUT IN ORDER TO ACCOMPLISH
THIS, IT'S GONNA REQUIRE A CLIMB...

FOR NICK.

ENGINEER NICK HOUSEHOLDER IS
CLIMBING THE STADIUM'S CATWALK

UP TO ITS HIGHEST POINT... 194 FEET.

HE'S FINDING OUT IF WE CAN REPLICATE

THE MAGNUS EFFECT WITH A LARGER BALL

FROM A MUCH GREATER HEIGHT.

NICK, HOW YOU DOING?

I AM SLOW IN MAKING THE TREK UP HERE.

I THINK YOU SHOULD COUNT YOURSELF LUCKY

THAT YOU DON'T HAVE TO COME UP THIS HIGH.

I'M GONNA DO IT FOR SCIENCE.

THE BULLS-EYE DIRECTLY
BELOW HIM IS ON THE 45-YARD LINE.

NICK WILL THROW THE BALL WITH BACKSPIN,

USING THE MAGNUS EFFECT
TO CURVE THE BALL AS IT FALLS.

IN THERE, TWO, ONE.

♪♪

THE SPINNING BALL
LANDS ON THE 20-YARD LINE,

ABOUT 25 YARDS FORWARD OF THE BULLS-EYE.

THAT WAS WAY OFF.

AS THE BALL PICKS UP SPEED,

THE DESCENDING SPINNING
BALL DRAGS AIR AROUND IT,

FORMING AREAS OF LOWER AND HIGHER PRESSURE.

THIS IMBALANCE CREATES A NET FORCE,

CAUSING THE BALL TO SWERVE AWAY.

I THOUGHT IT WAS NEAT...

ABLE TO UNDERSTAND THE SPIN OF THE BALL.

Delaney: DARREN'S SLOW-MO
TELLS EVEN MORE OF THE STORY.

I THINK PART OF WHAT I FIND
INTERESTING ABOUT THE SHOT

IS THE RATE AT WHICH IT
CHANGES ITS DIRECTION.

SO, IT STARTS OFF KIND
OF ALMOST STRAIGHT DOWN,

BUT AS IT PICKS UP MORE
AIR AND MORE MOMENTUM

IT HITS MORE AIR,

IT STARTS TO CHANGE FASTER AND FASTER,

GETTING FARTHER AND
FARTHER FORWARD, YOU KNOW?

IT BUILDS MOMENTUM.

-DEFINITELY. -YEAH.

WELL, THANK YOU, GUYS,
SO MUCH FOR HELPING OUT.

AND NOW YOU CAN BOTHER ALL YOUR TEAMMATES

WITH A SCIENCE FACT
ABOUT THE MAGNUS EFFECT.

-YEAH. -THAT'S TRUE.

Delaney: NEXT, I'M HITTING THE STREETS

TO MEET UP WITH A LOCAL BASKETBALL TEAM

TO FIND OUT WHAT THEY CAN
DO WITH A LITTLE MOMENTUM.

♪♪

ALL RIGHT, GUYS. SO, TODAY,

WE'RE TALKING CONSERVATION OF MOMENTUM.

SO, YOU'VE ALREADY GOT A BASKETBALL.

KICKBALL.

TENNIS BALL. ALL RIGHT.

SO, EVERYBODY HOLD OUT
YOUR BALL AT A UNIFORM HEIGHT.

THERE YOU GO. AND SO,
ON THE COUNT OF "THREE,"

WE'RE GONNA DROP THEM ALL AT THE SAME TIME.

DON'T BOUNCE THEM. JUST LET THEM...

JUST MOVE YOUR HANDS
AWAY AND LET THEM FALL.

AND WE'RE GONNA SEE WHICH
ONE BOUNCES THE HIGHEST.

WHICH ONE DO YOU GUYS THINK
IS GONNA BOUNCE THE HIGHEST?

- DEFINITELY THE KICKBALL.
- DEFINITELY THE KICKBALL?

-BASKETBALL. -I SAY TENNIS BALL

'CAUSE I'M THE SMARTEST OUT OF ALL OF YOU.

YOU ARE THE SMARTEST,
AND YOU SAY TENNIS BALL?

I'M GONNA GO WITH THE BASKETBALL.

BASKETBALL, 'CAUSE YOU'RE
HOLDING THE BASKETBALL.

ALL RIGHT. THREE, TWO, ONE... DROP.

BASKETBALL.

IT WAS DEFINITELY THE KICKBALL.

IT WAS DEFINITELY THE BASKETBALL.

IT WAS DEFINITELY THE KICKBALL!

ALL RIGHT, ALL RIGHT, ALL RIGHT.

IT SEEMS LIKE WE ARE A LITTLE DIVIDED

AS TO WHAT WE THINK HAPPENED.

DARREN HAS THE SLOW-MO
SHOT TO SOLVE THIS ARGUMENT.

THE WINNER OF THE HIGHEST
BOUNCE GOES TO THE BASKETBALL,

BUT JUST BARELY.

WHEN EACH BALL DROPS,
GRAVITY PROPELS IT THE GROUND,

GAINING ENERGY OF MOTION OR KINETIC ENERGY.

ACCORDING TO NEWTON'S THIRD LAW OF MOTION,

THE BALL EXERTS A FORCE DOWN ON THE FLOOR,

AND THE FLOOR EXERTS AN
EQUAL FORCE UPWARD ON THE BALL.

BUT NONE OF THESE BALLS GOES MUCH HIGHER

THAN ABOUT THREE FEET.

SO WHAT WOULD IT TAKE TO
MAKE THE BALL GO EVEN HIGHER?

WHAT DO YOU THINK WOULD HAPPEN
IF WE STACKED ALL THREE BALLS

ON TOP OF EACH OTHER AND THEN DROPPED THEM?

I'D SAY, LIKE, THE ONE
ON TOP GO THE HIGHEST.

THAT'S MY GUESS.

- WE'LL HAVE TO FIND OUT.
- YEAH, I HAVE TO AGREE WITH HIM.

I DON'T THINK IT WOULD BOUNCE ANY HIGHER.

ALL THE ENERGY WILL PROBABLY GET ABSORBED.

AND IT'LL ALL TIP OVER? YEAH.

ALL RIGHT, THERE'S ONLY
ONE WAY TO FIND OUT.

READY, GUYS? ALL RIGHT.

THREE, TWO, ONE.

Delaney: I'M ON THE STREETS
WITH A LOCAL BASKETBALL TEAM...

♪♪

...AND WE'RE ABOUT TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS

WHEN THESE THREE BALLS JOIN FORCES

FOR ONE SHARED BOUNCE.

READY, GUYS? ALL RIGHT.

THREE, TWO, ONE.

OH! WHOA!

NOT TOO BAD, NOT TO BAD.

I'M THE GENIUS.

DROPPED SOLO, ALL THE
BALLS GO ABOUT THREE FEET.

WHEN THE BALLS ARE STACKED
ON TOP OF EACH OTHER,

THE TOP BALL CATAPULTS
TO A HEIGHT OF 18 FEET,

A 600% INCREASE.

THIS STACK OF BALLS

IS CALLED A GALILEAN CANNON

AND DEMONSTRATES THE CONSERVATION

OF LINEAR MOMENTUM.

WHEN THE BALLS ARE DROPPED,

ALMOST ALL OF THE
KINETIC ENERGY OF THE BALL

ON THE BOTTOM IS TRANSFERRED
TO THE BALL ON THE TOP.

THIS TRANSFER OF KINETIC
ENERGY IS SO GREAT,

THAT THE TENNIS BALL FLIES
OUT OF THE CAMERA'S VIEW.

THREE, TWO, ONE.

MOMENTUM IS MASS TIMES VELOCITY,

SO THE TENNIS BALL HAS LESS
MASS THAN THE BASKETBALL,

BUT WHEN YOU DROP THE BASKETBALL,

ALL OF THE ENERGY FROM THAT BASKETBALL

WAS TRANSFERRED THROUGH
THE KICKBALL TO THE TENNIS BALL,

AND IT CAN'T GET ANY BIGGER,
SO IT'S ONLY GONNA GO FASTER.

IN EFFECT, THIS GALILEAN
CANNON HARNESSES THE ENERGY

FROM BOTH THE BASKETBALL AND THE KICKBALL

AS A FLOOR FOR THE TENNIS BALL.

THEIR ENERGY TRANSFERS INTO THE TENNIS BALL

AND INCREASES ITS BOUNCE DRAMATICALLY.

IS THERE A WAY TO USE THIS TO HELP MY GAME?

NOPE. YOU'RE ON YOUR OWN, MAN.

YOU HAVE NO HOPE!

[ LAUGHTER ]

ANOTHER WAY TO VISUALIZE
THIS TRANSFER OF ENERGY

IS NEWTON'S CRADLE.

SIR ISAAC NEWTON FAMOUSLY USED

A SERIES OF BALLS IN THIS DEVICE

TO SHOW THE LAW OF
CONSERVATION OF MOMENTUM.

ESSENTIALLY, THE BALL
AT THE FINAL END RECEIVES

MOST OF THE ENERGY AND
MOMENTUM OF THE FIRST BALL.

WE SAW AN IMPRESSIVE TRANSFER OF ENERGY

ON THE BASKETBALL COURT.

NOW I WANT TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS

IF WE CAN REALLY GET
SOME HEIGHT INTO OUR GAME.

SO, I'M TAKING THIS EXPERIMENT
OUTSIDE TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS

WHEN WE GO FROM A 5-FOOT
DROP TO A 30-FOOT DROP.

ENGINEER NICK IS SETTING
UP A CRANE AND A DEVICE

TO STABILIZE OUR GALILEAN CANNON.

ALL RIGHT, GUYS, SO, WE'VE COME OUTSIDE

IN THE NICE, WARM SUN TO TRY THIS AGAIN,

BUT WE'VE MADE SOME MODIFICATIONS.

WE HAVE THIS BIG, OLD CRANE.

THAT'S GONNA GET US
ABOUT 30 FEET IN THE AIR,

SO WE CAN DROP THE GALILEAN
CANNON FROM A HIGHER HEIGHT.

SO ANY PREDICTIONS AS TO WHAT MIGHT HAPPEN?

I THINK IT'LL GO TWO TO THREE TIMES HIGHER

THAN IT DID IN THE GYM.

TWO TO THREE TIMES HIGHER?

TO GO OFF JOEL'S PREDICTION,

I THINK IT'LL GO FOUR TIMES THE HEIGHT.

FOUR TIMES, ALL RIGHT.

YEAH, I'M GONNA HAVE
TO GO WITH ZACH AND JOEL,

AND I THINK IT'LL GO FOUR TIMES THE HEIGHT.

I LIKE YOUR POSITIVITY.

WHEN WE DROP THE BALLS
FROM SUCH A HIGH POINT,

THE CHALLENGE IS TO MAKE
SURE THEY REMAIN STABLE

AS THEY FALL SO THEY LAND
DIRECTLY ON TOP OF ONE ANOTHER.

NICK HAS A PLAN.

THE BALLS WILL BE CONNECTED TO A PVC PIPE,

WHICH WILL ALLOW THEM TO FALL
DIRECTLY ON TOP OF EACH OTHER.

ALL RIGHT, NICK. FIRST STEP... DROP THIS.

GREAT. SO, WE'LL GET A REALLY
GOOD POINT OF COMPARISON

OF JUST THE BALL DROPPING COMPARED

TO THE STACKED BALL THAT WE DO AFTER?

EXACTLY.

IN THE GYM, THE TENNIS BALL BOUNCES

JUST THREE FEET FROM A FIVE-FOOT DROP.

LET'S SEE WHAT A 30-FOOT
DROP DOES TO THAT NUMBER.

TENNIS BALL DROP TEST... THREE, TWO, ONE.

RELEASE.

SO, THE TENNIS BALL, ALL BY ITSELF,

BOUNCES ABOUT THE HEIGHT
OF THE LAMPPOST... 12 FEET.

NOW, LET'S SEE HOW MUCH
WE CAN MULTIPLY THAT

BY TRANSFERRING ENERGY
THROUGH OUR STACK OF BALLS.

ALL RIGHT, NICK. YOU READY?

-READY TO GO. -ALL RIGHT, GO FOR IT.

THREE, TWO, ONE.

ALL RIGHT, NICK. FIRST STEP... DROP THIS.

Delaney: I'M ON THE STREET
EXPLORING LAWS OF MOTION

WITH A BASKETBALL,
KICKBALL, AND TENNIS BALL.

WE'RE ABOUT TO SEE WHAT
KINETIC ENERGY CAN DO

TO THE BOUNCE OF THESE
BALLS WHEN WE GO HIGH...

30 FEET HIGH, THAT IS.

ALL RIGHT, NICK. YOU READY?

READY TO GO.

THREE, TWO, ONE.

♪♪

[ CHEERING ]

WHEN DROPPED ON TOP
OF THE TWO LARGER BALLS,

THE TENNIS BALL SOARS TO 52 FEET.

THAT'S ALMOST A 300% IMPROVEMENT

FROM THE 18-FOOT HEIGHT WE REACHED INSIDE,

AND A 400% IMPROVEMENT
FROM THE SOLO DROP OUTSIDE.

SO, OUR TEAM'S PREDICTIONS
ARE PRETTY SPOT ON.

IF YOU LOOK AT THE BASKETBALL,

IT DOESN'T HAVE MUCH BOUNCE AT ALL.

WHEN THE BASKETBALL HITS
THE GROUND IT COMPRESSES,

STORING ELASTIC POTENTIAL ENERGY

THAT PUSHES IN TO THE BALL ABOVE IT.

THE MOMENTUM FROM THE BIGGER BASKETBALL

IS TRANSFERRED INTO THE BALL ABOVE IT

AND THEN, TRANSFERRED TO THE TENNIS BALL.

WHEN THE TENNIS BALL
COLLIDES WITH THE KICKBALL,

IT RECOILS AT HIGH SPEEDS

BECAUSE OF THE BIG DIFFERENCE
IN MASS BETWEEN THE BALLS.

I THINK WHAT WAS MOST INTERESTING WAS

WATCHING HOW THE DIFFERENT
BALLS REACTED TO THE FORCE.

THE BASKETBALL, IT COMPRESSED A LOT,

BUT IT WAS NOWHERE NEAR AS
DRAMATIC AS THE DODGEBALL.

THE DODGEBALL JUST REALLY
VISUALIZED HOW MUCH FORCE

WAS GETTING EMITTED INTO THE TENNIS BALL,

WHICH SHOT UP SO HIGH.
IT WAS REALLY IMPRESSIVE.

Delaney: SO FAR, NEWTON'S LAWS OF MOTION

HAVE GIVEN US SOME SPIN

AND SOME SURPRISING BOUNCE.

BUT WE'RE NOT DONE.

YOU KNOW THOSE CHAINS OF BEADS

THAT ARE USED TO TURN ON A CEILING FAN?

I'M MEETING WITH A GROUP
OF ENGINEERING STUDENTS

TO SEE IF THESE BEADS CAN DEFY GRAVITY.

HELLO, GENTLEMEN. THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME

TO COME INTO YOUR LAB HERE.

CAN YOU IDENTIFY THIS
OBJECT FOR ME, PLEASE?

METAL BEADS?

METAL BEADS... A CHAIN
OF METAL BEADS, RIGHT?

SO, WHAT I'M GONNA DO IS,

I'M GONNA PULL THIS CHAIN OUT OF THE JAR,

AND WE'RE GONNA SEE
WHAT HAPPENS, ALL RIGHT?

ARE YOU ALL READY?

WHOA.

[ LAUGHTER ]

SO, WHAT DID YOU SEE HAPPENING?

WELL, FIRST OFF, LIKE, THE METAL BEADS

DIDN'T TOUCH THE RIM OF THE GLASS.

THEY KIND OF MADE AN ARC.

YEAH, RIGHT. THEY JUMPED OUT A LITTLE BIT.

SO, WHAT WOULD CAUSE A CHAIN OF BEADS

TO LEAP OUT OF THE JAR
AND RISE LIKE A FOUNTAIN?

THIS IS CALLED THE MOULD EFFECT.

IT LOOKS SIMPLE, BUT THE SCIENCE BEHIND

THE CHAIN'S GRAVITY-DEFYING
JUMP IS QUITE COMPLEX.

THE CHAIN ACTS LESS LIKE
A FLEXIBLE STRING OF BEADS

AND MORE LIKE A SERIES
OF STIFF, CONNECTED RODS.

WHOA.

IF YOU PUSH ONE END OF THE CHAIN UP,

THE OTHER GOES DOWN,

BRINGING US BACK TO NEWTON'S THIRD LAW.

THE DOWNWARD FORCE OF THE
CHAIN HITS THE PILE BENEATH IT,

AND THE PILE PUSHES THE CHAIN BACK,

CREATING AN EQUAL AND OPPOSITE REACTION

IN THE FORM OF AN UPWARD KICKBACK.

THAT'S WHY WHEN THE
CHAIN FALLS TO THE FLOOR,

THE BEADS ARCH AS MUCH AS 3 INCHES.

SO IF A 6-FOOT DROP PRODUCES

AN ARCH OF 3 INCHES IN THE BEADS,

WHAT WILL A 30-FOOT DROP

FROM THE TOP OF A BUILDING PRODUCE?

I WANT TO SEE IF WE CAN GET AN
EVEN HIGHER ARCH THAN WE SAW,

SO WE'RE GONNA GO OUTSIDE,
WE GOT SOME MORE CHAIN,

AND WE'RE GONNA GO UP. SOUND GOOD.

-SOUNDS GOOD. -AWESOME. LET'S GO.

Delaney: SO, WE ALL HEAD
UPSTAIRS, TO THE ROOF.

HERE WE GO.

[ LAUGHTER ]

Delaney: WE'RE TAKING SCIENCE
TO THE STREETS TO SHOW

HOW A SIMPLE CHAIN OF BEADS
CAN APPEAR TO DEFY GRAVITY.

HERE WE GO.

I'M DROPPING THESE BEADS

FROM 30-FEET HIGH TO SEE HOW BIG OF AN ARCH

THE MOULD EFFECT WILL PRODUCE.

[ LAUGHTER ]

THE LONGER DROP REALLY
IMPROVES THE ARCH OF THE BEADS.

THEY REACH OVER A
FOOT AND A HALF IN THE AIR.

THAT'S MORE THAN SIX
TIMES WHAT WE GOT INSIDE.

SO, WE HAD A LONGER CHAIN.

WE HAD 30 FEET TO FALL

SO OUR CHAIN COULD BUILD UP ENOUGH SPEED

TO GET A REALLY HIGH
FOUNTAIN OUT OF THE JAR,

LOTS OF FUN.

DON'T TRY THIS YOURSELVES,

BUT THANK YOU FOR LETTING ME DO IT.

I APPRECIATE IT. YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME.

THANK YOU.

I HAVE ONE MORE EXPERIMENT WITH MOTION

THAT I WANT TO TRY OUT,

THIS TIME WITH OPPOSING MOMENTUM.

WHEN TWO OBJECTS PUSH AGAINST
EACH OTHER WITH EQUAL FORCE,

LIKE IN AN ARM-WRESTLING MATCH,

THEY BALANCE EACH OTHER OUT.

SO WHAT HAPPENS WHEN
BACKWARD AND FORWARD MOMENTUM

ARE EXACTLY THE SAME?

WILL THOSE FORCES CANCEL EACH OTHER, TOO?

AND CAN WE USE THIS PRINCIPLE

TO STOP A QUARTERBACK'S THROW IN MIDAIR?

TO FIND OUT,

I'LL NEED SOME HELP FROM
FORMER COLLEGIATE ATHLETES

KEVIN BUESS AND BRAD WAKEFIELD.

HELLO, GENTLEMEN.

THANK YOU FOR AGREEING
TO MEET ME HERE TODAY.

SO, THERE'S SOMETHING
I'VE ALWAYS WANTED TO TRY

THAT I'VE SEEN DONE A LOT,

BUT GENERALLY THEY USE A
CANNON TO SHOOT A FOOTBALL.

I'D RATHER HAVE A HUMAN THROW A FOOTBALL.

WHAT I'M GONNA DO FIRST
IS KIND OF TEST YOUR SPEED.

WE'RE LOOKING FOR, LIKE, A
CONSISTENT 30 MILES AN HOUR.

THINK YOU CAN DO THAT? -YEAH. YEAH.

30, 32. SOUNDS GOOD. SOUNDS GOOD.

ALL RIGHT. WE'LL DIAL IT IN.

♪♪

SHOW ME THAT ARM, MAN.

28.

30.

I THINK 30'S OUR SWEET SPOT.
- 30'S THE SWEET SPOT.

-YEAH. -PERFECT.

Delaney: NICK IS CHARGED UP TO
PROVIDE SOME OPPOSING MOMENTUM

WITH THE HELP OF A 261-HORSEPOWER TRUCK.

OKAY, SO I'VE GOT THIS GUY CLOCKED THROWING

CONSISTENTLY AT AROUND 30 MILES AN HOUR,

SO GO 30 MILES AN HOUR.

OKAY. HE WON'T...

HE WON'T KNOW WHAT HIT HIM.

[ CHUCKLING ]

NEXT, WE SET UP OUR HOMEMADE

HIT-ISAAC-NEWTON-IN-THE-FACE GAME.

I DON'T THINK ISAAC NEWTON WOULD MIND.

YOU HAVE A NICE ARM, WORKED PRETTY WELL...

THANKS... VERY CONSISTENT.

I'VE GOT A CHALLENGE FOR YOU.

SO, I HAVE THREE BALLS HERE.

I WANT YOU TO HIT THREE OF
THESE ISAAC NEWTONS BEHIND YOU,

ALL WHILE TRAVELING AT 30 MILES PER HOUR.

OH, SIMPLE. YEAH.

OKAY. ALL RIGHT.

HOP IN THE BACK OF THE
TRUCK, PUT YOUR HARNESS ON,

AND WE'RE GOOD TO GO.

WE HAVE PROFESSIONAL RIGGING

AND A CLOSED ROAD TO KEEP BRAD SAFE.

YOU SHOULD NEVER, NEVER TRY THIS AT HOME.

OUR QUARTERBACK JUST CAN'T HIT THE TARGET.

BUT IT'S NOT HIS AIM OR HIS ARM.

SCIENCE IS NOT ON HIS SIDE.

DARREN'S HIGH-SPEED
CAMERA REVEALS WHAT HAPPENS

WHEN FORWARD AND BACKWARD VELOCITIES

ARE THE SAME.

BRAD THROWS THE BALL BACKWARD,

CLOCKING IN AT 30 MILES AN HOUR,

WHILE NICK DRIVES THE TRUCK FORWARD

AT 30 MILES AN HOUR.

WHILE BRAD FEELS THE BALL GOING FORWARD,

THE BALL ACTUALLY HOVERS IN THE AIR

THEN DROPS STRAIGHT DOWN TO THE GROUND.

ACCORDING TO NEWTON'S SECOND LAW OF MOTION,

IF TWO EQUAL FORCES ACT ON THE SAME OBJECT

IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS,

THEY CANCEL EACH OTHER
OUT LEAVING ZERO NET FORCE

AND A QUARTERBACK WHO'S NOT
USED TO BEING ZERO FOR THREE.

-THAT WAS COOL. -THAT WAS PRETTY COOL.

BUT YOU DIDN'T MAKE IT. I FAILED.

SO, YOU WERE THROWING THE BALL

AT AROUND THE SAME SPEED
THAT THE TRUCK WAS MOVING.

AND WHEN YOU DO THAT,

YOU THROW AN OBJECT
IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION

THAT YOU'RE MOVING AT THE
SAME SPEED THAT YOU'RE MOVING,

IT'S JUST GONNA FALL STRAIGHT DOWN.

HUH. THAT MAKES SENSE.

YEAH.

Delaney: THE SPEED OF THE CAR
MATCHES THE SPEED OF THE BALL,

SO, ESSENTIALLY, THE BALL STAYS IN PLACE.

Householder: YOU COULD THROW IT FORWARD,

BUT YOU HAVE TO OVERCOME
THE MOMENTUM OF THE DIRECTION

THAT YOU'RE TRAVELING.

SO, IN ORDER TO GET IT TO
ACTUALLY MOVE FORWARD,

YOU'D HAVE TO THROW IT TWICE
AS FAST... 60 MILES AN HOUR...

IN ORDER TO HIT IT FROM WHERE WE WERE.

I HAVE TO WORK ON MY ARM A LITTLE BIT.

A LITTLE BIT. YEAH, YEAH, YEAH.

YOU GOT A GREAT ARM, MAN. THANKS.