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[Phys-L] Re: Analyzing movies: Speed, with Keanu Reeves



My favorites (besides "Speed")

"Jurassic Park"

Lots of problems in this movie, but I like to
concentrate on the bit that starts with Sam Neill and
the annoying kids finding the turned off electric
fence around the T-Rex compound. There are at least 13
electricity errors in under five minutes of screen
time. They include throwing a stick at the fence to
see if it is on (it hits in the air), having the kid
being electrocuted while not touching the ground,
having the kid be exploded off the fence, having his
hair stand up after he is no longer touching the
fence, and having standard fluorescent lights turn on
in sequence when their switch is turned on. (There is
a profanity in the middle of the sequence that I have
edited out.)

"Star Trek V"

Towards the beginning of the movie Kirk is trying to
free climb a cliff. Spock, who is hovering in rocket
boots, distracts Kirk and causes him to fall. Spock
jets down several hundred feet, taking fifteen
seconds, and grabs Kirk's leg just before he hits the
ground. It's not hard to estimate Kirk's speed and his
rate deceleration. Apparently Kirk is pretty tough
since my calculations suggest that Spock will rip
Kirk's leg off.

"Wildcats"

Not only is the physics bad, but the acting is bad
too. Goldie Hawn stars as a teacher in a tough high
school. A greaser student puts dents in lockers with
his head, and he offers to put a head dent in a pretty
girl's locker. Another student explains that the
greaser usually dents athletic lockers which are much
longer than the regular lockers. The greaser gives it
a go and knocks himself out. Goldie gets all
distraught, but the smart kid just says, "He fought
the laws of physics and lost."

"Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves"

Kevin Costner is launched with a catapult over a wall.
The angle is clearly all wrong, and it is trivial to
figure out the acceleration that would be necessary to
get him enough initial velocity to get him up to that
height.

"The Edge"

Anthony Hopkins and Alec Baldwin star in this trapped
in the woods stinker. At one point Anthony Hopkins
makes a magnet by rubbing a needle against silk. Weird
confabulation of static electricity and magnetism.

"Road Trip"

Fun sequence in this R-rated movie where they
calculate how fast they need to go over a ramp to jump
a creek.

"The Italian Job"

The new version. It isn't too hard to calculate how
much gold is in the cars and that it pretty much
doubles the mass of the car. The speed is displayed on
screen and so you can figure the amount of centripetal
force necessary to make the turns. Guess what, not
many tires are up to the task.

Marc "Zeke" Kossover
The Jewish Community High School of the Bay


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