------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the late 1940s Fred Morrison performed some experiments with flying discs. Some of the discs he experimented with were made out of metal while others were formed out of a new material called plastic. In 1955 the Wham-O Company purchased the rights and molds from Morrison. It wasn't until the early 1960s when Frisbees became the rage. Whamo-O's former General Manager Ed Headrick provided the organization and groundwork for the growth of the Frisbee craze. Today organized competitions take place each year around the world culminating in the World Frisbee Competition in California.
Two factors influence the flight of a Frisbee,
Under the
Bernoulli Principle, there is then a lower air pressure on top of the Frisbee than beneath it. The difference in pressure causes the Frisbee to rise or lift. This is the same principle that allows planes to take off, fly and land. Another significant factor in the Frisbee's lift is Newton's Third Law which states that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. The Frisbee forces air down (action) and the air forces the Frisbee upward (reaction). The air is deflected downward by the Frisbee's tilt, or angle of attack.
Spinning the Frisbee when it is thrown, or giving it angular momentum (gyroscopic inertia), provides it with stability. Angular momentum is a property of any spinning mass. Throwing a Frisbee without any spin allows it to tumble to the ground. The momentum of the spin also gives it orientational stability, allowing the Frisbee to receive a steady lift from the air as it passes through it. The faster the Frisbee spins, the greater its stability.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Does the thick rim of the Frisbee affect its flight?
2. What happens when you throw a Frisbee straight up? How do you aim a Frisbee?
3. What other sports use spin for better performance?
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Angular Momentum--A rotating body's resistance to change in its orientation and rate of rotation. This is similar to gyroscopic inertia.
Angle of Attack--The angle formed by the tilt of the flying disk and the line parallel to the ground.
Bernoulli's principle The pressure in a fluid decreases as the speed of the fluid increases.
Gravity--The force that makes objects move or tend to move toward each other.
Lift--An upward force resulting from decreasing the pressure on the top of an object by increasing the velocity of the air flowing over the top of it.
Newton's Third Law = for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Discover the best conditions for Frisbee distance flying!
By graphing the results of various tosses you will be able to calculate the average distance you can make a Frisbee fly and discover the best conditions for distance flying.
Materials:
* Frisbee
* Tape measure
* Paper
* Pencil
1. Divide your class into equal teams. Take turns throwing the Frisbee.
2. Measure the distance from where you began to toss the Frisbee to where it hits the ground. Record your distances in a log.
3. After everyone has recorded the distances of a few tries, calculate the average distance of your team's throws.
4. Compare your average to the other teams. Record the averages in your log and create a graph to represent your data.
* Horowitz, Judy and Bloom, Billy. Frisbee, More Than Just A Game of Catch. Champagne, Illinois: Leisure Press, 1983.
* Johnson, Dr. Stancil E.D. Frisbee. A Practioners Manual and Definitive Treatise. New York: Workman Publishing Company, 1975.
* Tips, Charles. Frisbee by the Masters, Millbrae, CA: Celestial Arts, 1977
* Wham-O Sports Promotion Department P.O. Box 4 San Gabriel, CA 91778-0004 (818) 287-9681
* International Frisbee Disc Association P.O. Box 970-P San Gabriel, CA 91776
People at Newton's Apple wrote this and begged me to copy it.