It’s BAAAAACK!
Better than Snakes on a Plane, here’s this classic puzzler:
“Imagine a plane is sitting on a massive conveyor belt, as wide and as long as a runway. The conveyer belt is designed to exactly match the speed of the wheels, moving in the opposite direction. Can the plane take off? “I say no, because the plane will not move relative the the ground and air, and thus, very little air will flow over the wings. However, other people are convinced that since the wheels of a plane are free spinning, and not powered by the engines, and the engines provide thrust against the air, that somehow that makes a difference and air will flow over the wing.”
Now, before you jump to a quick conclusion hear me out. I posed this question to Matt (getting his PHD in string theory), and a couple of his other Big Brained classmates up at Baylor a few months ago. We had a very lively and entertaining conversation for several hours and still didn’t come to any conclusion. And they started pulling out the slide rules and heavy math! Matt eventually posed the question to his thesis advisor and got a good answer (which depends on one fundamental assumption not posed in the original question). I have to admit I wasn’t convinced, but after puzzling it through until deep into the night with Matt, I know that their answer is the right one.
Never fear! Luckily, the MythBusters have tested it out in classic fashion.