01x13 - Don't Lose Your Lunch

[bunniefuu]

RICHARD: It's the Science of Stupid.

- [electricity crackling]
- [glass shatters]

[alarm blares]

[reading]

This is the science program
where eureka means...

"That's funny"

or "Oh, my God!"

[man screams]

Oh, yes,
we'll show you the science

that could have made these people's lives
so much simpler...

Ah! [bleep]

RICHARD: ...as we introduce
expanding gases,

stored energy,

and the conservation of momentum.

Watch as the scientifically impaired

stumble around
in an underworld of guided missiles...

and misguided individuals.

Showing that the difference between
insanity and genius is success.

[screams]

And that success without science...

can be disastrously elusive.

[laughter]

Call the emergency services,
it's the Science of Stupid.

- [electricity crackling]
- [glass shatters]

In this show, stand by

for the world's dizziest man...

MAN: [bleep]!

RICHARD: ...the world's shortest flight,

and the first human Popsicle.

But first, this.

- [glass shatters]
- [electricity crackling]

Forklift trucks.

Work horses of the warehouse.

But ignore the science,
and the warehouse becomes a w*r zone.

We all want to impress
on our first day at work.

[over mic]
Clean up in aisle three.

And all the rest of them.

Nearly 100 people die every year
in the USA in forklift accidents.

So let's put it safely
in the hands of science.

Raising the forks
raises the forklift's center of gravity.

That increases the chance
that lateral movement will tip

the center of mass outside the wheel base,
toppling the forklift.

Carry too much weight

and the forklift is like a seesaw,
pivoting on the front wheels.

Carry even more weight,
and it'll tip forward.

The tendency to tip
is one of the most common causes

of operator death.

MAN: Timber!

RICHARD: But all safe here.

Except for his job.

This fork-wit has tipped his forklift
forward to extend its reach.

By keeping the forks at maximum height
when he tips back,

he's turned his forklift into
a massive upside down pendulum.

This is the longest accident in history.

Those of you who have been
paying attention will remember

that a heavy load tilts
the forklift forward, like a seesaw.

So raising the forks with
too much weight on isn't a good idea.

Thanks for the demonstration.

Forklift operators need to be careful

and watch out
for heavy and unstable loads.

It's just common sense.

MAN: Just see what happens here.

This could be disastrous.

RICHARD: If it's so obvious,
why don't you tell him?

It's an unstable load.

MAN 1: That's going to fall.
That's going to fall! Yep.

RICHARD: Thanks for that.

Ten thousand green bottles
have accidentally fallen.

- [electricity crackling]
- [creaks]

Flying is not just for the birds.

After a successful take off
in a hand glider, or paraglider,

you can have the entire eagle experience.

Birds are the flying experts,

but h*m* sapiens is the top species
when it comes to flying accidents.

[woman screams]

Sorry, the bathroom is taken.

But the good news is, there's no danger
of you having these airborne accidents

until you've mastered the takeoff.

Let's show those dodos
the science of lift and takeoff.

Airfoils create lift
in air speeds of about 20 miles an hour.

Air flows faster on the top
than the bottom,

increasing pressure under the airfoil,
which pushes it up.

To get that sweet air speed,
pilots take off into the wind,

running or using a power source.

Get a good air speed over that airfoil,
and nothing can go wrong.

Probably.

This hill has a steep slope to run down,
and the pilot's facing into the wind.

Textbook.

Sadly, he hasn't checked the wind speed.

Remember, high wind speed for takeoff,
low wind speed for crash.

Why depend on the wind
in our modern scientific age?

This intrepid bird man
has borrowed his mum's hairdryer.

- Probably needs more power.
- [clattering]

Like this. Here's a powerful engine.

Well, I say that.

At least it's not far to the car.

This intrepid aviator is getting
towed into the air with a power boat.

But all that power won't help

if you've got
a nasty cross wind to deal with.

Here's Joe.

He's about to experience
the challenges of paragliding.

MAN: Run, Joe, run.

[woman screams]

MAN: Oh!

RICHARD: Takeoff, 100% success, Joe.

JOE: Aah!

RICHARD: Good luck with the landing.

It's certainly windy up here.

Remember what we said about
takeoff facing into the wind.

I wonder what happens when you don't.

[man screaming]

The wind's behind him,
so instead of launching him into the air,

it's dragging him over the cliff.

Fortunately it all ends well,
as once clear of the cliff,

he enjoys a pleasant ride
through the skies...

sort of.

MAN: Aah!

RICHARD: Sounds like
he's enjoying himself.

Fancy trying that again?

- MAN: Ugh.
- RICHARD: Maybe not.

- [glass shatters]
- [electricity crackling]

Question, how are biomechanics
about to spoil this holiday maker's day?

- [glass shatters]
- [electricity crackling]

Remember this relaxed leisure lizard?

His day by the pool
is about to take an unexpected turn.

[man laughs]

So why did he
take an unscheduled dip?

Well, when walking forwards,
we humans are virtually falling,

as our center of mass is often
in front of our supporting foot.

That's all well and good
when you keep going.

But a sudden stop means
that your forward momentum

will turn into a tumble.

"Why the sudden stop," I hear you ask?

Well, let's check what happened
whilst our friend was still snoozing.

Gluing sandals to the ground
isn't scientific, but it is very funny.

[man screams]

Running downhill is very dangerous.

But some say why walk when you can run?

And why run downhill when you can roll?

These rolling stones
aren't gathering moss,

just a selection of nasty bruises.

Have you noticed
how hard it is to run downhill?

Well, there's a reason for that.

When you run down steep hills,
gravity accelerates you very quickly.

The hill pushes your center of mass
in front of your feet, and over you go.

Trying to correct this
by shifting your center of mass backwards

means you topple backwards.

So if you try to run down a hill,
it'll probably end in tears.

So don't.

Nevertheless, some misguided individuals

believe they can
successfully run downhill.

Didn't I say, "Don't do this"?

These folks are amusing themselves
by chasing this round cheese.

There it is.

WOMAN: Grab the cheese!

RICHARD: But it's obvious that
no one's going fast enough to catch it.

So they're enjoying
the old English tradition

of using gravity to meet people.

- Although you might not want to meet him.
- [whistles]

The reason that running humans can't catch
a round cheese rolling down hill

is all in the science.

Friction prevents a non-round object
from moving down a slope,

as it needs more force to rotate.

A round object actually requires friction
to gain the traction

that allows it to roll, rather than slide.

This bin isn't round,

so needs some gentle encouragement
to start it rolling.

- MAN 1: Are you ready?
- MAN 2: Go ahead.

MAN 1: That's got to hurt.

RICHARD: But because it's not round,
it doesn't roll efficiently.

That's better.

[man screaming]

These brave Russians
have done their homework

and they've planned
a 20-mile-an-hour roll.

[all screaming]

At enough g-force to cause blackout,

the crew have been ejected.

They've had enough.

But the round drum...

wants to keep on rolling...

back down the other hill.

[shouting]

Not to be outdone
by their Russian colleagues,

the American roll program
uses a simple but effective method.

With a 50-foot-high hill,

gravity could accelerate the roller
to 30 miles an hour.

Aah! That sucks!

RICHARD: You don't say.

I hit my face on the inside
of the tire like 30 times. Dhush! Dhush!

RICHARD: Yes, like headbutting
a wall 30 times.

Shame there wasn't a camera in the tire.

Ooh-hoo, there was!

MAN: [bleep]!

Oh, my God! Oh, my God!

Oh, my God!

- [electricity crackling]
- [metallic squeak]

High pressure gases and liquids
need to be treated with respect.

Or avoided altogether,
because they're extremely dangerous.

Even a simple toy,
like this air-propelled rocket.

MAN: I can't see it.

- Ugh!
- RICHARD: There it is.

Differences in pressure
can lead to dramatic consequences,

from propelling things through the air
to blowing them up.

Falling foul of pressure
isn't just one of those things.

It comes from a failure
to grasp the science behind its power.

Increase the amount of gas or water,
and you increase its volume.

Limit the volume, but continue
to increase the amount,

and the pressure rises.

And if the pressure gets too much,
the container explodes.

So the key to pressure control
is a steady release of water

or a steady release of gas.

So, not understanding
that pressure is controlled

by a gentle release can be dangerous.

This car may bob like a cork,
but it weighs a ton.

Massive rainfall has ramped up
water pressure inside the sewer pipes.

Remember controlled release?

This isn't it.

Well, at least the car's clean.

Oh, no, it's not. That's a sewer.

The perfect Sunday afternoon.

Wash the car...

and take a nap.

That's over 2,000 pounds per square inch,
five times more pressure than a fire hose.

Extreme high pressure water can cut steel.

And if you think water pressure is bad,
check out the gas.

At room temperature,
liquid nitrogen turns into nitrogen gas,

which has 700 times the volume.

So placing it in a sealed bottle
probably isn't a good idea.

And standing close is an even worse idea.

Mixing an acid and a base
generates carbon dioxide gas.

Getting really hard now.

RICHARD: Remember what
happened with the nitrogen gas?

Oh!

RICHARD: So don't play with pressure.

Hey, let's let off some steam.
Actually it's high pressure gas.

Didn't we say
pressure must be released gently?

Yeah, we did.

Some sort of crime
has been committed here,

even if it's only against fashion.

[electricity crackling]

[metallic squeak]

[metallic thud]

Skiers get to wonderful locations
like St. Moritz, Breckenridge, Whistler,

and the fracture clinic.

[hip-hop music playing]

I bet you didn't see that coming.

And neither did he.

But ski jumping is an even more dangerous
downhill death ride,

and without the science,
it's the landing that gets you.

The world record ski jump is 808 feet.

But you can do yourself a mischief
with much smaller jumps.

To avoid that, you need science.

A successful landing depends
on maintaining the jump's momentum

when returning to the slope.

The skis must land parallel to the snow
and be facing downhill

to minimize the friction
acting against the direction of travel.

A bad landing
results in rapid momentum loss.

And before worrying about the science,
make sure you land on snow.

WOMAN: Oh, my God! Ohhh!

RICHARD: Ski fashion, three out of ten.

WOMAN: Oh, my God! Ohhh!

RICHARD: Landing, zero out of ten.

And who'd want to land in this?

Ah, he would.

[laughter]

Skiers can jump
twice as far as snowboarders.

But you do need to take
your skis with you.

The friction on his skis stops them dead,

whilst the momentum
of the rest of his body

slams him into the snow.

- [woman screams]
- MAN: Oh, sh*t!

And a single-ski landing
doesn't give enough balance.

- [woman screams]
- MAN: Oh, sh*t!

I got that on tape!

RICHARD: Cheers for that.

MAN: Are you ready?

RICHARD: Here's a clear landing site.
And he's got both skis on.

MAN: Whoa!

RICHARD: Leaning back
during takeoff starts a spin.

MAN: Whoa!

RICHARD: His back works like a crude ski
and gets him downhill.

But trust me, skis are much better.

MAN: I thought you were
going to die for a second.

RICHARD: Even the greatest ski jumpers
should never forget the science...

of landing.

Because leaning back does this.

And leaning forward does this.

That's probably an impact
three times his body weight.

Perhaps it's easier
if you land in the opposite direction.

No. No, it isn't.

Remember, land sideways
and friction stops the skis dead

whilst the skier's momentum
sends him off on another jump,

sadly without his skis.

[electricity crackling]

[metallic creak]

If you want to pole vault
over high or wide obstacles,

you'll be needing a big stick.

Top pole vaulters can clear obstacles
up to two stories high.

But not with six feet of old tree.

[laughter]

To pole vault, you need a strong,
flexible carbon fiber or fiberglass pole.

Yes, that's pole vaulting.

So how does a bendy stick get a vaulter


Science, of course.

The elastic properties of the pole
store and release energy from the run,

which propels the jumper
over the cross bar.

The faster the run, the more energy
there is to store in the pole.

The more the pole bends,

the more potential energy
is stored in the pole.

The pole then releases the energy,
lifting him into the air.

Twenty-five percent of high school pole
vaulters injure themselves every season.

So, jumpers, beware.

Unless you're strong enough
to control the pole,

the energy from your run
is released with unpredictable

and generally painful consequences.

Remember, keep hold of the pole.

MAN: Oh, [bleep]!

RICHARD: Letting go unleashes
the energy of the jumper's run...

like that.

- MAN: Oh! Oh, my God!
- RICHARD: And that.

It's a pole, not a javelin.

Theoretically, a 17-foot pole
can propel a vaulter over 20 feet.

Getting maximum energy
into a pole creates lots of strain,

so top jumpers check their poles
for damage before every jump.

And here's why.

The energy stored in these poles
can be up to 3,000 foot pounds.

That's more energy than a b*llet has
when it leaves a r*fle,

but it's not just a broken pole
you need to worry about.

The beautiful conversion
of horizontal momentum

into vertical momentum, perfect.

Except for that.

One of the finer points of pole vaulting.

- [glass shatters]
- [electricity crackling]

Stop the pain, pressure, pronging, poking,
pranging, and popping.

You all take care of yourselves.

And the best way to do that,

is avoid everything you've seen
people doing on the Science of Stupid.

[lively fiddle music playing]

BOY: Oh!

[laughter]

[groaning]