Chapter 10: Center of Gravity

CENTER OF GRAVITY

The Great Trilithon Balancing Act
How were the massive trilithon stones of Stonehenge ever put into place? A Nova team investigated one possible method—shifting the stone's center of gravity to make it stand upright. Read the article, then find out how to recreate this PBS Online experiment using a cardboard model.

CENTER OF MASS

Center of Mass
In this SMILE lesson written by Joan C. Preer, you will determine the center of mass of two irregularly shaped objects and learn why an object is unstable or unbalanced.

LOCATING THE CENTER OF GRAVITY

Center of Gravity
In this SMILE lesson written by Minnie E. Bounds, you will learn how to find the center of gravity of an object by using a plumb line and bob.

TOPPLING

Balance and Center of Gravity Activity
Why doesn't the Leaning Tower of Pisa fall over? In this SMILE activity by Mark Stevensen you will learn about balance and center of gravity by using a plexiglas model of the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

Hummer Homepage
Read about the incredible maneuverability of the Hummer vehicle. Due to its wide body and low center of gravity, a Hummer is able to go up or down 60% slopes and traverse 40% side slopes.

CENTER OF GRAVITY OF PEOPLE

Sports Science
This article from the University of Wisconsin's Why Files explores the dominant role of science and technology in the Olympic games. Learn how a computer can analyze the biomechanics of your high jump. Be sure to check out the Quicktime video (1650 k) of a high jumper who passes over the bar while her center of gravity passes below.

Unit 1: Learning Links
Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6
Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 10, Chapter 11
Chapter 12, Chapter 13, Chapter 14, Chapter 15, Chapter 16