Anti-Gravity Wheel Explained

TL;DR

When a spinning wheel is lifted, it feels lighter due to the absence of the need to counter torque, even though its actual weight remains the same.

Transcript

Standing on the scale. The wheel is spinning and it still weighs 92 kilograms. You made the prediction. Let’s see what happens when I throw it up over my head in three, two, one. What do you think?I don’t know about you, but to me it looked like a shaky mess. Let’s watch that again in slow-mo and I will graph the scale readings. As you can see, dur... Read More

Key Insights

• 🏋️ When a wheel is spinning, its weight remains the same, but the need to counter torque is eliminated, resulting in a perceived lighter weight.
• 😮 Adjusting the procession speed of a spinning wheel causes it to rise or fall, but this does not impact its actual weight.
• 👮 Gyroscopes, like spinning wheels, possess properties that challenge Newton's laws of motion, according to Professor Eric Laithwaite.
• ❣️ Supporting a static wheel requires exerting additional torque force to counter its weight, making it feel heavier.
• 🙂 The absence of a counter torque is what makes lifting a spinning wheel feel easier and lighter.
• 🏋️ The scale reading of a spinning wheel remains consistent with its stationary weight when lifted.
• 🧑‍🦼 The temporary changes in scale reading during the lift occur due to the wheel's falling or slowed descent.

Questions & Answers

Q: Why does a spinning wheel feel lighter when lifted?

When a wheel is spinning, the torque caused by its weight makes it process rather than fall, eliminating the need for a counter torque, making it feel lighter.

Q: How does the torque affect the weight of a spinning wheel?

The torque applied by the spinning motion doesn't change the actual weight of the wheel, but it eliminates the need to exert additional torque force to counter its weight, contributing to the sensation of it feeling lighter.

Q: Can the weight of a spinning wheel be manipulated by adjusting its procession speed?

No, adjusting the procession speed of a spinning wheel does not alter its weight; it only affects the wheel's movement, causing it to rise when the procession is forced to increase and fall when slowed down.

Q: How does the absence of the need to counter torque affect the perceived weight of a spinning wheel?

When the need to counter torque is eliminated, the force required to support the weight of the wheel feels lighter because there is no additional torque exerted by the hands.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The scale reading of a spinning wheel remains the same as its stationary weight when lifted, indicating that the apparatus doesn't get heavier or lighter when spinning.

• The only significant change in the scale reading occurs when the wheel is let to fall or its descent is slowed, resulting in a temporary drop or rise in weight respectively.

• Professor Eric Laithwaite claimed that the properties of a gyroscope, like the wheel, cannot be entirely explained by Newton's laws of motion.