You may not know this, but I am a hoarder. I hoard blog ideas. They accumulate in my mind and make a mess. It's embarrassing, really. My therapist says that the first step to recovery is to give away some of these blog ideas. So, here we go. After finally watching The Avengers, I am putting these ideas out by the curb. Hopefully, someone will find a good use for them. If not, they will get picked up by the trash people.
Oh, one more thing. SPOILER ALERT. If you haven't seen The Avengers movie, some of these ideas might give away some of the plot details.
Thor Falling in a Prison
In case you don't recall, S.H.I.E.L.D. built a special container for The Hulk. The idea was that no one could break through the glass (it was probably transparent aluminum) - but if someone DID, they could just drop the whole thing out of the helicopter. Loki ends of tricking Thor to get him trapped in there and then drops it.
- If the container is a cylinder about 8 meters in diameter, what would be the terminal velocity of this cylinder? You are going to have to an educated approximation for the mass.
- Using the terminal speed from above, what is the minimum distance for this container to reach terminal speed (I doubt it is more than 30,000 feet like they said in the movie)?
- Thor is trapped in the falling container. Does this tell us anything about how Thor flies? He apparently can't fly with the container around him.
- Suppose the container DOES stop him from flying. Right before the container hits the ground, he flies out. Problem solved, right? This is like a recreation of a classic Wiley Coyote scene. Ok, maybe in the short time between escaping and crashing into the ground, he uses his flying ability to slow down. What kind of acceleration could have to soften his landing?
See. There was a ton of stuff just in that one scene.
The Hulk With Thor's Hammer
At one point in the movie, The Hulk decides it would be a good idea to pick up Thor's hammer (Mjölnir). Well, this is a problem. Apparently, no living being may pick it up unless they are worthy. The Hulk must not be worthy. In his attempt to wield the weapon, he pushes on the floor with so much force that it cracks. Estimate the force that The Hulk pulls on the hammer.
Terminal Speed of Falling Iron Man
Near the end of the movie, Iron Man flies up into the dimensional portal (or whatever that thing is) and then falls back through. As he falls, he is unconscious or something. Estimate the terminal speed of a falling Iron Man. I know you will have to make some pretty wild estimates of his mass, but I know you can do it.
The Hulk's Not So Stupid
The Hulk sees the falling Iron Man. What does The Hulk do? Does The Hulk smash? No. He jumps up and grabs the falling Iron Man. After that, he drags his hand through a building as he falls. Why is this smart? It increase the distance over which Iron Man stops. This decreases his acceleration. So, using the terminal speed from before calculate the acceleration of Iron Man as The Hulk catches him.
The Hulk vs. Loki
In this scene, The Hulk faces off with Loki. Of course, things don't turn out so well for Loki with The Hulk picking up Loki by the leg and smashing him into the floor. For this one, I would recommend a video analysis (there are many versions of this on youtube if you search). In the analysis, estimate how fast The Hulk was swinging Loki and estimate the acceleration of Loki as he slams into the floor. Hint: estimate the depth into the floor that Loki crashes.
Ok, that is it. I have to confess that I saved a couple of ideas for myself. Just a couple. Remember, if you don't take these for your blog they will just end up in a land fill. Do you know how long it takes an idea to decompose? I don't either.
