[ale] [OT]: Better packing material than whipped cream?

[Michael H. Warfield]

On Mon, 2014-01-27 at 21:23 -0700, Robert L. Harris wrote: 
> Ok, my son is doing the egg drop in high school physics.  He has a
> good plan but is limited by a 100gram weight limit.  He's thought of
> using whipped cream (frozen with dry-ice before drop) to act as a
> shock absorber.  I'm concerned with it breaking down and just becoming
> slush while he waits.  Anyone have any good suggestions?

Stunt men use piles of milk cartons to absorb energy for some jumps.
While not on that scale, I would recommend piles of balls like the balls
kids play in at t Chucky Cheese or a vat of ping pong balls.  The
objective is to dissipate and distribute energy and provide a gentle
deceleration.  Larger balls (tennis balls or the big plastic balls)
would probably NOT work due to the size ratio.  Ping pong balls might
just work and they are extremely light.  Along the same lines, stunt men
also use partially inflated air cushions as well.  Something along the
lines of a 3/4 blown up air bag might work.
> 
> Robert
> 
Mike

> -- 
> :wq!
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Robert L. Harris
> 
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Michael H. Warfield (AI4NB) | (770) 978-7061 |  mhw at WittsEnd.com
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