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

[Michael H. Warfield]

On Tue, 2014-01-28 at 00:39 -0500, Michael H. Warfield wrote: 
> On Tue, 2014-01-28 at 00:31 -0500, Michael H. Warfield wrote: 
> > 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.

> More I think about it...  Try this...

> Take a small trash back and set it in a bowl about its size and blow it
> up where it's almost, but no quite firm.  You could blow it up by breath
> but the challenge is going to be in sealing it so it doesn't lose air.

> You could easily drop and egg on to that with out breaking.  The bag's
> weight should be trivial.  The question really is the correct air volume
> to provide the proper cushion so the egg doesn't "hit the bottom" while
> not making it so stiff that it breaks the egg.

Thought number two.  Get a packing box filled with those air cushion
pillows.  Wouldn't take many and they are light as hell...

Mike

> > > Robert
> > > 
> > Mike
> > 
> > > -- 
> > > :wq!
> > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
> > > Robert L. Harris
> > > 
> > > DISCLAIMER:
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> > >        ALONE.  I speak for                      First One Should Be A
> > > Man
> > >        no-one else.                                     - Manowar
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> 

-- 
Michael H. Warfield (AI4NB) | (770) 978-7061 |  mhw at WittsEnd.com
   /\/\|=mhw=|\/\/          | (678) 463-0932 |  http://www.wittsend.com/mhw/
   NIC whois: MHW9          | An optimist believes we live in the best of all
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