guide Crash Course Parkour Physics: Newton's Laws

[Person_Random 4,991]

Last time on Parkour Physics, we learned about the various aspects that keep our tanks driving in the way they do. Now, let’s go ahead and learn about just exactly where this motion comes from. Sit down, grab a notebook and pen, and take some good notes, because you’re reading Crash Course: Parkour Physics.

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Hello again! It’s now the second issue of this physics-based series, so I hope you’re all hanging in there alright. We’ve just covered kinematics, but if you haven’t, perhaps you would like to do so here before moving on the best topic in physics: forces. Since the topic of forces is quite a complicated one, I’ll break it down into two. We’ll start with the basics of Newton’s Laws before moving on to more complex force situations in the next issue.

 

 Warning Label (Please Read before continuing)

To interpret this document, it is best that you have some background in trigonometry and algebra.  I will do my best to explain the non-physics mathematics. Please contact me through Forum PM if you have any issues.

 

 Forces? You mean like the Force?

No. Good one, though. Here’s a point for trying. But no, forces are the interactions between two objects (a push or a pull). (Yes, I know… this explanation is awfully awkward. I’m very sorry.) Again, just like how kinematics has two types, linear and rotational motion, forces come in two general different types: contact forces and non-contact forces. We’ll discuss the differences later. First, let’s learn about Newton’s Laws. This will be a short and sweet lesson. In the next issue, I'll cover more about parkour and physics.

Actually, no, before we begin, a quick story. Did you know that Newton was on break due to the Black Death when he discovered these laws that define physics? (And he discovered calculus, so that’s also the same guy to blame for all the problems with derivatives and integrals.) So, just something to think about, while in lockdown, you can learn something new too. Even though you might not revolutionize physics and math, there’s something out there that you can begin to understand. Okay, yeap, that’s enough rambling for now. Let’s get down to real physics.

 

Newton’s First Law (Law of Inertia)

An object will continue in its state of motion unless compelled to change by a force impressed upon it. Basically, if an object, like that annoying unmovable Mammoth sitting on the Assault base, is at rest, it will stay at rest unless an unbalanced force acts on it. Same goes for another object moving at a constant velocity; it will move in a straight line unless an unbalanced net force acts on it. This property (an object’s natural resistance to changes in its state of motion) is also known as inertia, hence why this law is also known as the Law of Inertia. I’d demonstrate with an example, but seriously, I’ve looked so far and wide through my ten physics books and found not one example just covering the first law, so let’s move on.

 

Newton’s Second Law

When a net external force ΣF acts on an object with mass m, the acceleration a that this object experiences is directly proportional to the force ΣF and inversely proportional to the mass m; in other words, ΣF=ma (a=ΣF/m). The acceleration that the object experiences should also be in the same direction of the net force.

Three quick things to address before I move on: First, the units are kg・m/s², which becomes the compound unit Newtons (named after the man who came up with these laws). Second, force is still a vector, so it has pesky x and y components. I promise, one day, these bothersome vectors will no longer be the biggest problem in physics. Last but definitely never least, my AP Physics 1 review book wants to remind you that it is the most equation in mechanics, so if you don’t take away anything else from this article, perhaps you’ll remember that ΣF=ma. Okay, sorry for the huge textwall, moving on…

 

 Example 1

An Mk8 Wasp/Shaft takes careful aim at a 4000kg Mammoth Mk8, then snipes perfectly at the dead center of the Mammoth, imparting 650N of impact force. What is the magnitude of the Mammoth’s acceleration?

 

 Explanation

Spoiler

 

To solve this, we use the equation a=ΣF/m derived from Newton’s Second Law.

Since I am asking for the magnitude, you don’t need to do any direction calculations. Unless you really want some extra credit, then sure, be my guest.

 

 

Newton’s Third Law

This is probably the law that everyone always remembers for the wrong reasons. (“To every action action, there is an equal, but opposite, reaction”) Formally, it’s when one object exerts a force on another object, the second object exerts an oppositely directed force of equal magnitude on the first object. These forces are commonly known as an action-reaction pair.

 

 Example 1

Let’s look back at example 1. Two quick follow-up questions:

a. What is the magnitude of the force that the Wasp/Shaft (2000kg) experiences?

b. What is the magnitude of the acceleration of the Wasp/Shaft?

 

 Explanation

Spoiler

 

a. Due to Newton’s Third Law, the force is the same magnitude, but directed in the opposite direction. Therefore, the magnitude of the force is 650N.

b. The magnitude of the acceleration of the Wasp/Shaft would also then be found with the equation a=ΣF/m derived from Newton’s Second Law.

 

Thanks for reading so far. We’ve just finished discussing Newton's Laws. As promised, we’re going to analyze the reasons behind the legendary status of Wasp Mk1.

 

 The Real Reason Why Wasp Mk1 is Legendary (not clickbait)

Wasp Mk1 has almost always been the choice of parkourists ever since the sport (idk, isn’t parkour a sport in real life?) was born in Tanki. Through quick process of elimination, parkourists have chosen Wasp as the fastest and lightest hull. 

 

Why not Hornet?, one might ask. Well, Wasp and Hornet both have the same mass, but the difference lies in where the mass is concentrated. Wasp has part of its hull elevated, while Hornet lacks that, giving Wasp a higher center of mass (we’ll discuss that later). This gives Wasp its characteristic instability, which makes it all the easier to flip.

Take a moment to chuckle while I catch my breath. As parkourists experimented further, they discovered that while Wasp increases in speed with each modification, it also gained a significant amount of mass. The mass gain meant that a Shaft shot only propels the hull a fraction of the distance it used to (remember? a=ΣF/m, so when m is doubled with ΣF staying constant, a is halved). Parkourists soon caught on, and realized that the ideal parkour machine needed to go to Weight Watchers. So of course, the M0 Wasp was perfect for the game, having a significant amount of speed as well as the lightest weight to keep it flying in the air for the longest time.

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So there you have it, another parkour physics episode wrapped up. We’ll talk more about forces with gravity and friction, as well as introduce some more complex force situations next time. Until then, that's it!

A huge thank-you to @Pun to making this signature!

[Person_Random 4,991]

Today, we bring back the classic Parkour Physics series. Find out the forces that make tanks fly and fall right here! Oh, and while you're at it, why don't you have some free cake? 

[Viking4s 10,791]

I see that covid-19 did adversely affected some reporters, unless this is one of the rumoured "procrastination group therapy session".  

[Person_Random 4,991]

Just now, At_Shin said:

 

I dunno, probably nothing cake? I had chocolate last year; it was delicious

[LyT 222]

Awesome Signature.

[eshu26 32]

in tanki wiki, is recoil and explosion impact also measured in newtons?

[Iron_Man 2,376]

On 4/15/2020 at 2:19 AM, Person_Random said:

 

You sure are a remarkable physicist.

Edited January 23, 2021 by Venerable
When you quote an entire topic, please remember to remove the contents from the quote-box, or place the quote-box in a spoiler.

[I_Lauv_You 221]

Interesting to see a non-parkourist (I have never seen you in parkour) talk about such a topic, I scrolled through.. but won't read it all. It is kinda interesting too that the "mk" update changed parkour too! Before, m0, m1, m2, m3 were used and obviously the majority was m1 wasp cause it was a perfect weight and was fast too (assuming these all are MUed wasps). m0 and m1 were loved just to make things simpler cause there are easier opportunities with them, yet all the versions were used in parkour which was great. Now since the "mk" update happened... it is either mk1 or mk7 and never in between anymore just because the bigger gap of upgrades between each version became smaller which made disadvantages to the ones in between. Plus now there is light weight augment so it is mainly mk7 wasp with light weight now because it has the hugest advantage with speed and weight uff... anyways, interesting topic to put real science references into this! Yes I know there is physics and such in parkour, and calculations you can make but I never think of newtons law and such when creating tricks for parkour haha , a different change of talk about parkour that I know someone will enjoy

[SwiftSmoky 8,445]

Would be interesting to see a "tanki science paper" of experimental physics - measure things like the maximum movement and rotation speed, friction (btw tanks have different friction when they are flipped), strength of gravity (tanki's G constant), etc. If you enjoy playing with the math, you could design experiments to make new* discoveries!

* You probably won't discover new phenomena, but you will find exact numbers based on which you can even teach parkourists by showing them intuitive examples, like how far does a tank need to fall in order to reach the speed limit, or how much firepower is needed to accelerate a tank to that speed, and so on. Many players still don't even know tanki has speed limits, so I'm sure such an article would be interesting even to those not interested in exact numbers.

[SwiftSmoky 8,445]

Just to be clear, by maximum movement and rotation speed I don't mean any hull's driving and turning speed. There is a movement and rotation speed that once you reach them (doesn't matter how, could be by falling far or getting shot a lot) no matter how much more force you add you wont go any faster.

To give you an idea of how fast the max speed is, this video shows a trick that is impossible to complete without players shooting the jumper in the air multiple times, because he reaches the max speed limit quickly and after that any additional shots won't do anything if they happen too early:

 

Edited October 19, 2020 by SwiftSmoky

[Person_Random 4,991]

Thanks for the positive feedback all!

6 minutes ago, SwiftSmoky said:

 

Would love to; if I could get some videos or something (as this poor potato would not be able to handle much parkour ), I think that would be great! It certainly would be a fun and challenging paper to write.

 

53 minutes ago, Low-Key said:

 

I did parkour before, but this was waaaay back, when my computer could handle tanki decently, hence the extra hours on my account 

[SwiftSmoky 8,445]

1 minute ago, Person_Random said:

Would love to; if I could get some videos or something

I don't play tanki anymore, but maybe you'll have some luck asking around in the parkour community

[SwiftSmoky 8,445]

Just now, At_Shin said:

It could be done in the html5 version as there is a radar of radius 60 meters for players.

Maybe some skilled Parkourist could note the time taken to travel that distance while travelling at max speed?

This could work well, together with lots of twins shooting a tank to make him keep moving on the ground at max speed. I think it's worth checking both ways (yours and mine) because with free fall you can be sure the tank doesn't have anything slowing him down (like friction at the time between the shots).

[Devoid 2,601]

On 4/14/2020 at 3:49 PM, Person_Random said:

 The Real Reason Why Wasp Mk1 is Legendary (not clickbait)

Wasp Mk1 has almost always been the choice of parkourists ever since the sport (idk, isn’t parkour a sport in real life?) was born in Tanki. Through quick process of elimination, parkourists have chosen Wasp as the fastest and lightest hull. 

 

Why not Hornet?, one might ask. Well, Wasp and Hornet both have the same mass, but the difference lies in where the mass is concentrated. Wasp has part of its hull elevated, while Hornet lacks that, giving Wasp a higher center of mass (we’ll discuss that later). This gives Wasp its characteristic instability, which makes it all the easier to flip.

I disagree with your assumptions that having a hull that flips easier is a good thing. I have tried out both Lightweight augments for Wasp and Hornet Mk7, and Hornet is drastically better for parkour, as it is so much easier to control in the air; I assume Mk1 of both Wasp and Hornet would have the same characteristics, with Hornet being easier to control. Both can fly the same distance, so it's more favorable to have a hull that's easier to control.

[Person_Random 4,991]

Just now, Mr.Nibbles said:

 

Hey, thanks for the feedback! It's what I prefer when parkouring; I'm not that good at controlling Hornet to be honest, so Wasp is my go-to. It depends on the person, and you're right - I should have also included Hornet.