Scientific American Supplement, No. 531, March 6, 1886Various
Science
Scientific American Supplement, No. 531, March 6, 1886
Various
Science -- Periodicals
represented by the triangle F I G, and to have its velocity accelerated
two additional feet per second, as represented by the line I G. So in
two seconds the body has moved through four feet. We may follow the
operation of this law as far as we choose. The figure shows it during
four seconds, or any other unit, of time, and also for any unit of
distance. Thus:
Time 1 Distance 1
" 2 " 4
" 3 " 9
" 4 " 16
So it is obvious that the distance moved through by a body whose motion
is uniformly accelerated increases as the square of the time.
But, you are asking, what has all this to do with a revolving body? As
soon as your minds can be started from a state of rest, you will
perceive that it has everything to do with a revolving body. The
centripetal force, which acts upon a revolving body to draw it to the
center, is a constant force, and under it the revolving body must move
or be deflected through distances which increase as the squares of the
times, just as any body must do when acted on by a constant force. To
prove that a revolving body obeys this law, I have only to draw your
attention to Fig. 2. Let the equal arcs, A B and B C, in this figure
represent now equal times, as they will do in case of a body revolving
in this circle with a uniform velocity. The versed sines of the angles,
A O B and A O C, show that in the time, A C, the revolving body was
deflected four times as far from the tangent to the circle at A as it
was in the time, A B. So the deflection increased as the square of the
time. If on the table already given, we take the seconds of arc to
represent equal times, we see the versed sine, or the amount of
deflection of a revolving body, to increase, in these minute angles,
absolutely so far as appears up to the fifteenth place of decimals, as
the square of the time.
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