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Originally Posted by sombody
So Karl-
What effect do you think an industrial strength gyroscope attached to a skydiver somewhare might have on his flight - if any. Would it add any stabilization- or maybe take some of the fun out.
rick
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I believe that a gyroscope has many functions and properties, but the way we use the concept of a gyroscope is similar to the properties that portions of our inner ear do for determining balance and "up from down". A gyroscope does this for a computer, and our inner ear does it for our brain...
If I have the concept of your "gyroscope" correct, then it is not needed. A person uses their own sense of "balance" and has no need for gyroscopic stabilization while in freefall. A person is traveling (thanks to gravitational pull) at speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour thru the air, and by deflecting that air off their body, they can control a great deal of movements.
It is not realistic to compare a freefalling skydiver to a person who has tumbled out of control. That concept is only for those who have not jumped, as it is hard to hold onto it with that much airspeed. THis is not to say that skydiving is not a hard learned skill, it is. Students tumble all the time when learning their craft. I suppose your gyroscope could be compared to training wheels, but it would be like training wheels on a Harley. As soon as you figure out how to make it go, the wheels become more of a restriction than an assistant.
Now, if you were speaking of a gyroscope as a portion of a navigational system for gliding or flying around, that may be an interesting path to explore, but the range of a parachute is still limited and always traveling toward the ground at some point, so casual side trips are not often available between the plane and the landing zone. They are available to some degree, but not as "Gee, lets go over there and see what is up, then come back here and land" kind of trips...
This is kind of off topic. I'll happily continue it, but we should go the appropriate forum.
As far as the guy and the kids on the trampoline. I have now witnessed the video, and am fine with my preconceptions. This guy is a fool, and has put his kid in unnecessary risk.
Now, I do not say that lightly. I have been told on this forum that I am an irresponsible parent for having my children on the platform of my E-167 with me. Others have been called irresponsible for towing their children in trailers and wagons with their segways.
I do not wear a helmet, but my kids are required to when on the seg with me. They have not yet been invited to try the seg alone, they ride with me. My 6 year old is tall, and weighs about 60 pounds. I suspect it will not be too long before his first, well controlled solo will happen.
Where I have a problem with the video is not the seg on the trampoline. It is the kid on the seg with no protective gear, clearly more than a hand's length away from aid.
Others have mentioned that childhood involves bumps and bruises. That is true, especially if you encourage your children to explore the limits of there world, as I do. That is not the same as showing no respect for reasonable precautions. If those kids had helmets and knee pads and wrist protectors, I would have thought their dad a mere fool, not too far from me. Since he did not insist on those things for his kids, for me, the scale tips to irresponsible.
Now, everyone sets those scale to their own values. I know lots of skydivers who did not stop jumping just because they had kids. I will take it up again when my kids are off to college. Those who have different values are not wrong, but are not making the same value calls that I make that is all.
Where everyone makes the mark for what is a good parenting practice and what is not is so personal and changes daily with me. I will allow my kids some room on some days that I do not allow on others. Some of it is based on external situations, some of it is just on that 'gut' feeling that we have to listen to sometimes...
So, Go ahead, play the fool. I have done so for decades, and loved every minute of it. But, never forget that if you are the dad, you NEED to be the DAD, and your kids deserve it.
One final illustrative story. When my first born son learned to walk up steps, I was always behind him. It was the rule. He was about 18 or 20 months old, he had been walking for a while (Before 11 months) but he had just learned to walk up the stairs and not crawl up...
He had a habbit of climbing about 3/4 the way up, and then turn and jump into my arms. I am talking about a real leap....of faith. I knew that he never looked first. He just knew his dad was there, and would launch. As quickly as I could, I set out to break him of this habbit, as I knew it would eventually come to pass that I would miss the catch, for some reason. (Imagine a 20 year old, launching and crushing his poor ole' dad) Anyway, I eventually convinced him that he should not do this thing, unless he looked me in the eye first...
My story is about this. What nice life it is, to have dad there, so that we don't have to look. That is a great place to live. I think that all kids deserve to live there. In my opinion, if one of those kids on that seg on that trampoline needed to leap, or started to fall, that dad had set it up to not be able to be there. THAT is why I call him irresponsible.