Scales do NOT measure Weight!

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  • čas přidán 22. 05. 2024
  • Contrary to popular belief, bathroom scales do not measure weight. Weight isn't a (Newtonian) force we can measure directly. What do scales actually measure? Let's find out with an experiment. [ Brilliant for 20% off: brilliant.org/ScienceAsylum ]
    00:00 Cold Open
    00:24 Planning the Experiment
    01:03 What is Weight?
    02:19 Astronauts are NOT Weightless
    03:33 Apparent Weight
    04:11 The Experiment
    05:08 Conclusions
    06:40 Buoyancy as a Factor
    07:11 Summary
    07:57 Outro
    08:18 Sponsor Message
    09:19 Featured Comment
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Komentáře • 2,7K

  • @ScienceAsylum
    @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety +371

    There seems to be a lot of confusion about "mass" and "weight." This is likely due to the fact that the English dictionary has many definitions for each of these words, so they often get used interchangeably in everyday conversation. Most of those definitions are irrelevant for this video because, in a discussion about physics, the physics definition (if it exists) always takes priority. So let's properly define our terms:
    *Mass - The amount of matter in an object. It's measured in kilograms or slugs.*
    In Newtonian mechanics, mass stays the same no matter where you are or what you're doing. If my clone is 75 kg on Earth, then he's also 75 kg in an accelerating elevator and in low-Earth orbit and in deep space. The amount of matter inside you doesn't depend on those things.
    *Weight - The force of gravity from a large object (like a planet). It's measured in pounds or newtons.*
    That's it. It's just what we call the force of gravity in the situation when one mass is much larger than the other. I defined it at 1:49. This definition can be found in any introductory physics textbook. I even posted a few pictures from those textbooks on Twitter: twitter.com/NickLucid/status/1410763207879368705 Weight is the same no matter what you're doing. In an elevator, my clone has a weight of 165 pounds regardless of acceleration. Weight is _not_ the same regardless of where you are. My clone is 165 pounds on the ground, but he's 140 pounds on the ISS,and he's zero pounds very far from larges masses like stars, planets, and moons. You have to get _really_ far away for this to be a factor though. The top floor of a building isn't far enough. In a building, weight doesn't change.
    *Which does a scale measure?*
    Neither. Mass isn't even a force, so there's no way a scale could measure it. _I didn't bring it up in the video because it wasn't relevant._ Since weight is a force, you might expect the scale could measure it, but it doesn't. Scales can only measure forces that require physical contact and weight isn't a contact force. Push scales measure normal force. Pull scales measure tension.
    Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.

    • @sameer26121980
      @sameer26121980 Před 2 lety +12

      Thank you for the reply. I think we were on the same page on mass and weight based on your reply.
      But again, regarding the scale measurement, don't you think the tension should be equivalent to the weight (force) as our body rests on it and is stationary? This can only happen when both forces due to gravity and opposing force exerted by scale are equal (This is when we consider tension measuring our weight is the ONLY force opposing our weight).

    • @DANGJOS
      @DANGJOS Před 2 lety +8

      @The Science Asylum There are some mixed thoughts on how to define weight. You're correct, given your definition. I will stick with the normal force definition of weight because it's more useful, and it's likely what people usually mean by weight. On Earth's surface, weight is almost as invariant as mass, for all practical purposes, so I find it more useful to use a parameter that does significantly change.

    • @duprie37
      @duprie37 Před 2 lety +16

      Where I live we measure weight in kg 😉

    • @Wicky89
      @Wicky89 Před 2 lety +7

      Hey thanks for all your vids I’m learning lots and there made really well.
      Question for a video maybe
      I’m just learning about electrons and solar power, what is the difference between AC and DC power? And if solar panels create dc current why do we convert it to AC and… do we lose power in transition would it be better to make dc powered appliances.
      Sorry for silly question never really learnt physics till started researching it recently and I just really want to understand how the hell everything around me works (like solar energy, batteries and “space time”) and why everyone else’s understands it but I don’t I should have done better in school :(
      Thanks.

    • @AwijeetRishav
      @AwijeetRishav Před 2 lety +2

      @@Wicky89 i hope you are well, i hope i didn't disturb you by replying, as many a times people expect reply from content creator
      Well ac is easy to manipulate (control)
      But with newer tech, this difference will become bleak
      I am a Healthcare Professional by the way

  • @jerwahjwcc
    @jerwahjwcc Před 2 lety +564

    You're a braver man than I referring to your wife as "or whatever" 🤣

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety +93

      😂

    • @rauldumitrascu4929
      @rauldumitrascu4929 Před 2 lety +6

      True! 😂

    • @rauldumitrascu4929
      @rauldumitrascu4929 Před 2 lety +9

      Also, I don't this is the way a man should push on a woman. 🤣

    • @daddymuggle
      @daddymuggle Před 2 lety +45

      @@rauldumitrascu4929 well, the evidence suggests that she's no push-over.

    • @harshjha536
      @harshjha536 Před 2 lety +5

      @@ScienceAsylum sir I have one question if An elevator is moving downward with acceleration of say 12 m/S2 then effective g will be now (10-12) which is negative what is feel of this negative acceleration?? Please sir🤔tell m!! I am big fan of yours😊☺️

  • @andie_pants
    @andie_pants Před 2 lety +290

    _I didn't forget about it. I ignored it._
    Spoken like a true physicist. 😂

    • @zoomboy6676
      @zoomboy6676 Před 2 lety +8

      And also like a true Engineering student (You know what I mean lol)

    • @monad_tcp
      @monad_tcp Před 2 lety +7

      and yet , when I ignore putting "+c" everyone loses their minds

    • @andie_pants
      @andie_pants Před 2 lety +2

      @@kojak8403 What?

  • @iankrasnow5383
    @iankrasnow5383 Před 2 lety +41

    For an even more straightforward example of "normal force" on a scale, try putting your scale on an incline. It won't give your entire weight, only the weight that's normal to the surface the scale is sitting on.

    • @mids5854
      @mids5854 Před 2 lety +1

      Put it on a slope, east to west and west to east... with an accurate enough scale you should be able to confirm planitary rotation.

    • @KarstenJohansson
      @KarstenJohansson Před 2 lety +3

      @@mids5854 No because it doesn't accelerate. The elevator demonstrated that once acceleration stops (elevator is at full speed) it shows your correct weight again. Then once braking begins, the opposite happens. To confirm planetary rotation as you described, you'd have to stop the rotation or change its speed first.

    • @snydedon9636
      @snydedon9636 Před 2 lety +1

      @@KarstenJohansson Superman did that all the time when I was a kid in the 60s.

  • @HBlack97
    @HBlack97 Před 2 lety +44

    I remember doing this in my high school physics class and it was probably one of the most interesting lessons we did. The fun lessons like that are what made me love science in general, good teachers know how to keep class interesting.

  • @RasperHelpdesk
    @RasperHelpdesk Před 2 lety +240

    I'm reminded of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy which states that flying requires learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss...

    • @philochristos
      @philochristos Před 2 lety +7

      That's the thought that went through my mind, too.

    • @ericwiddison7523
      @ericwiddison7523 Před 2 lety +15

      Turns out that's how to orbit.
      The important thing is for the astronauts to be regularly distracted so they forget to hit the ground on each orbit.

    • @jhoughjr1
      @jhoughjr1 Před 2 lety +2

      like an orbit

    • @Krish-jm6ve
      @Krish-jm6ve Před 2 lety +1

      @@ericwiddison7523 So how can weight be measured when you "feel" weightlessness ?

    • @ericwiddison7523
      @ericwiddison7523 Před 2 lety +5

      @@Krish-jm6ve My comment was about a series of jokes from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I wasn't commenting about weight at all, including what "weightless" means or how to measure it.
      But your question is an interesting one. You can't measure weight as a force, so you have to measure it by determining the acceleration vector that is attributable to gravity. I don't know if there is a way to measure it directly, but you can measure it indirectly.
      It may be possible to measure it almost directly with an accelerometer. I don't know enough about how linear accelerometers work to know for sure.

  • @NotHPotter
    @NotHPotter Před 2 lety +328

    Careful. Using the scale other than as intended may void its warranty.

    • @aniksamiurrahman6365
      @aniksamiurrahman6365 Před 2 lety +4

      Whoa! Even for a bathroom scale!

    • @superking208
      @superking208 Před 2 lety +21

      This is why I love kitchen scales, because the manufacturer can't possibly know WHICH herb I'm weighing out in my kitchen...

    • @Robert_McGarry_Poems
      @Robert_McGarry_Poems Před 2 lety +3

      @@superking208 Cell phones...I mean two decades ago, I would have totally agreed.

    • @superking208
      @superking208 Před 2 lety +20

      @@Robert_McGarry_Poems Gotta love how the world's takeaway from dystopian literature was "Oh, so if I voluntarily let Big Brother in my house to watch and listen at all times, I can avoid typing a few characters per day? Sign me up! Alexa, play 'Despacito'!"

    • @tmdrake
      @tmdrake Před 2 lety

      True.

  • @weshansen7892
    @weshansen7892 Před 2 lety +128

    So I've just learned that scales work exactly how I've known they have for my entire life. I thought this video was going to blow my mind or something

    • @sethb3090
      @sethb3090 Před 2 lety +19

      Nope, just 10 minutes of quibbling about the definition of weight

    • @toby9999
      @toby9999 Před 2 lety +16

      It didn't blow your mind because you already knew it but realise most people don't know it. Most people ate clueless of basic physics.

    • @mayorb3366
      @mayorb3366 Před 2 lety +19

      @@toby9999 Most people think a 1/3 pound burger is smaller than a 1/4 burger, but it cost more.
      That's why fast food places took them off the menu. Yes, really.

    • @kamikeserpentail3778
      @kamikeserpentail3778 Před 2 lety +8

      ​@@mayorb3366 I refuse to believe it, for my own mental safety.

    • @mayorb3366
      @mayorb3366 Před 2 lety +1

      @@kamikeserpentail3778 You are very wise.
      There are certain times in life where you just have to cover your eyes and plug your ears and say.... "la la la la la la la" .

  • @bikeboy6674
    @bikeboy6674 Před 2 lety +12

    Just brilliant. I've been trying to explain this thing about scales, lifts and gravity to my son - but nowhere near as well as this. I can't wait to show him this video when he comes home from school later. Huge thanks, Science Guy!

  • @baki4003
    @baki4003 Před 2 lety +142

    “You don’t feel weight, you only feel pushes and pulls”… man I feel enlightened, thanks for the video

    • @Randomperson-dj5yv
      @Randomperson-dj5yv Před 2 lety +3

      but isn't weight itself just "pull"

    • @iamjimgroth
      @iamjimgroth Před 2 lety

      I read that precisely when he said it.

    • @joshanonline
      @joshanonline Před 2 lety +3

      I once argued with an intellectual that our Weight(not Mass) was a measure Gravity forcing you into an object that stops your free fall. And I was called ignorant lol
      And this is why I don't argue with people that claim to know everything about something.

    • @tektrixter
      @tektrixter Před 2 lety +3

      We also don't feel temperature, but the heat transfer in or out of our bodies.

    • @nickname7152
      @nickname7152 Před 2 lety +1

      @@tektrixter Eat a lot and stand still, do nothing for a while after eat then you will feel it, guaranteed.

  • @MrMcp76
    @MrMcp76 Před 2 lety +335

    As a kid I started to have this same suspicion about what scales actually measured when I held the bottom half down and pulled the top half up and watched the dial spin the other way, effectively displaying what I called negative weight. I realized then it was measuring how hard I was pulling or pushing on it. 34 years later you make a video expertly explaining what me as a 10 year old was seeing. What other childhood observations will you help explain next? 😄 Great video!

    • @Dargonhuman
      @Dargonhuman Před 2 lety +4

      We had an old spring scale that was effectively a sandwich of two steel plates around a series of springs that were attached to a dial when I was a kid. My mom told me to always pick it up by the bottom plate and never the top plate, which of course meant I had to pick it up by the top plate at least once just to see why I wasn't supposed to and saw the dial do the exact same thing. Also I ended up stretching some of the springs by doing that which meant my stepdad had to go through the tedious process of recalibrating the scale to account for the stretched springs but it was worth it to me.

    • @Will-dn9dq
      @Will-dn9dq Před 2 lety

      So you broke your parents scales? Lol

    • @Will-dn9dq
      @Will-dn9dq Před 2 lety

      @@Dargonhuman lol literally what I said 1st guy did broke scales. Your mom learned not to tell kids not to do stuff lol.

  • @trealwilliams1563
    @trealwilliams1563 Před 2 lety +8

    I've already went there with my mind... no need to physically take a scale anywhere. Thanks for the superb content; You are truly in my book as the gangsta of science within your respective fields!!!👍🏽🖖🏾

  • @jasonjbharlow
    @jasonjbharlow Před 2 lety +3

    7:04 I disagree. The buoyancy force on snow and slush are both completely negligible. The reason slush is harder to shovel is that it is more dense, and so a shovel-full has a greater mass than a shovel-full of snow.

  • @aniksamiurrahman6365
    @aniksamiurrahman6365 Před 2 lety +301

    "This isn't flying, it's falling with style".

    • @france8607
      @france8607 Před 2 lety +2

      Hahahahha

    • @chuckoneill2023
      @chuckoneill2023 Před 2 lety +3

      Ohhhh, man. I was gonna say that😉

    • @Bolpat
      @Bolpat Před 2 lety

      I don't think it's a good intuition to say an orbit is falling but the earth curves away. I'd rather go with falling is an extremely eccentric orbit.

    • @lyrimetacurl0
      @lyrimetacurl0 Před 2 lety +1

      Like the end of Dark Star?

  • @horophim
    @horophim Před 2 lety +111

    “The Guide says there is an art to flying", said Ford, "or rather a knack. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.”

    • @mjproebstle
      @mjproebstle Před 2 lety +9

      the Guide is useful in so many ways…

  • @mrcreepypl
    @mrcreepypl Před 2 lety +5

    I remember my first ever physics lesson in school about 8 years ago. The teacher talked about the difference between mass and weight. I was so fascinated that physics became my favourite subject on that day!

  • @lewismocaby3646
    @lewismocaby3646 Před 2 lety +7

    This brought back to mind my days of running cranes. The point in time in which a load is lifted that it begins movement “going up” no matter what it is it becomes heavier for a fraction of a second. Depending on the speed at which it’s being hoisted that force can actually overload a crane. I remember learning in my crane certification classes that this point in time of initial force is called the moment of load. Interesting that I I’ve never even considered it since then in the elevator of all places.

  • @oscarlama
    @oscarlama Před 2 lety +83

    "Falling but missing" is some hitchhikers guide to the galaxy stuff

  • @DrDeuteron
    @DrDeuteron Před 2 lety +367

    what makes this funny is that I have an elevator scale in my bathroom.

  • @jackcooper7934
    @jackcooper7934 Před 2 lety

    Nick, you're very informative and entertaining to watch. Thank you

  • @anjalisrivastava3619
    @anjalisrivastava3619 Před 2 lety +2

    I really like your style of teaching. I have watched almost all of your videos. I really used to like the style of the one which you made a year back around or so would like to see more of it.

  • @E39520IA
    @E39520IA Před 2 lety +75

    You can use this effect in an elevator, when carrying grocery bags. When you enter the elevator in the parking floor, place the bags on the floor. Just before you reach your floor and the elevator begins to stop, lift you bags up again and they will be much lighter. This need perfect timing, but it works great.

    • @spindoctor6385
      @spindoctor6385 Před 2 lety +5

      I find it fun to try to jump just as the elevator stops, you can get some serious "height" in relation to the elevator floor.

    • @5Siver
      @5Siver Před 2 lety +10

      @@spindoctor6385 you can also cause the elevator to make an emergency stop.

    • @spindoctor6385
      @spindoctor6385 Před 2 lety +8

      @@5Siver I never thought of that, a sudden stop instead of decelerating would be awesome.
      The main question would be "Is it to childish for a 46 year old guy to play in elevators?" and if the answer is yes will that stop me?

    • @5Siver
      @5Siver Před 2 lety +1

      @@spindoctor6385 if you won't have a flight to miss (like I had) then you're fine :)

    • @Broockle
      @Broockle Před 2 lety

      kawaii uwu

  • @Sforschondetta
    @Sforschondetta Před 2 lety +75

    Turn the scale upside down. The Earth now weighs ~your earth weight~ on planet You.

    • @captaincruise8796
      @captaincruise8796 Před 2 lety +5

      Doesn’t this only work in Soviet Russia?

    • @apple54345
      @apple54345 Před 2 lety +1

      Vsauce did it!

    • @heliusuniverse7460
      @heliusuniverse7460 Před 2 lety +1

      gravity works both ways so if the scale weighs 50N, the earth feels 50N of force towards the scale too, so in a weird way you really are measuring the "weight" of the earth in relation to the scale. just like you would measure the weight of something in relation to the earth

    • @corinnemuir1542
      @corinnemuir1542 Před 2 lety +2

      @@captaincruise8796 aaahhhhh I was gonna do that!

    • @Broockle
      @Broockle Před 2 lety +3

      u don't have to flip the scale upside-down for that. That will just make it harder to read xD

  • @zinaidanitikin4886
    @zinaidanitikin4886 Před 2 lety +10

    2:50 falling sideways. falling and missing... Douglas Adams had this to say about it in The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy...
    "There is an art to flying, or rather a knack. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. ... Clearly, it is this second part, the missing, that presents the difficulties"
    According to the Guide, the main thing that flying requires is the ability to throw yourself at the ground and miss. It says to throw yourself forward with all your weight and "the willingness not to mind that it's going to hurt", however it will surely hurt if you fail to miss the ground. The difficulty is in missing the ground, and doing so accidentally, as "deliberately intending to miss the ground" does not work.

    • @julialeslie9213
      @julialeslie9213 Před 2 lety +1

      I am very happy folks noticed this!

    • @AlexandarHullRichter
      @AlexandarHullRichter Před 2 lety

      I believe this is the reason airlines have been misplacing luggage since that book was published.

    • @zinaidanitikin4886
      @zinaidanitikin4886 Před 2 lety

      @@AlexandarHullRichter in times like that, all you can really do is smile, wave, and thank them for all the fish.

  • @skateordie9628
    @skateordie9628 Před 2 lety +1

    this is the first vid I see and subbed immediately. Very interesting and very well explained, also it's refreshing to change perspective on the mundane.

  • @andrewloeber3844
    @andrewloeber3844 Před 2 lety +21

    Very interesting! I had to do this exact experiment as a project for my AP Physics class years ago. Teacher told us to bring a bathroom scale on an elevator, videotape the change in measured weight, and use the footage to calculate the maximum and minimum acceleration of the elevator, exactly as you did here.

  • @storm14k
    @storm14k Před 2 lety +45

    Could picture Nick getting kicked out of a building for playing in the elevator with a scale. 🤣

    • @paulmichaelfreedman8334
      @paulmichaelfreedman8334 Před 2 lety +4

      The building's caretaker was not so Lucid about it either.

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety +35

      😂 I filmed it at a school I used to work at in a science department elevator. It wouldn't have looked as weird as you're imagining.

    • @Robert_McGarry_Poems
      @Robert_McGarry_Poems Před 2 lety +5

      @@ScienceAsylum Hey, didn't you graduate... And then work here?

    • @NightBazaar
      @NightBazaar Před 2 lety +3

      "...AND DON'T YOU EVER COME BACK HERE AGAIN!!!" (Kicks Nick off the elevator). Nick rises and falls on a curve. Nick raises his finger, looks at the camera, and says, "Hey, Crazies! What happens when you get kicked in the hiney?"

    • @mk_rexx
      @mk_rexx Před 2 lety

      Don't worry, it's nust a clone!

  • @patrickscahillii9365
    @patrickscahillii9365 Před 2 lety +2

    Great presentation, brings back memories of my youth when I was really into technical things.

  • @pantelisvasileiadis2858
    @pantelisvasileiadis2858 Před 2 lety +3

    was much more interesting than I thought. Dude youre making great videos!

  • @mjproebstle
    @mjproebstle Před 2 lety +30

    WHY NOT ?!? Cheers!

  • @onebeets
    @onebeets Před 2 lety +49

    3:25 footage of astronauts performing important science on the ISS

    • @adb012
      @adb012 Před 2 lety +5

      Yep. We call it conservation of angular momentum.

    • @NamedSoni
      @NamedSoni Před 2 lety +3

      @@adb012 its simpler to call it Torque.

    • @alphagt62
      @alphagt62 Před 2 lety +5

      I was worried that guy spinning would bump his head!

    • @Jamesdavey358
      @Jamesdavey358 Před 2 lety +1

      @@NamedSoni not the same thing....

  • @seanfisk2252
    @seanfisk2252 Před 2 lety +2

    Thanks for the fantastic idea for my IB Physics Class!

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety

      I used to do this in my physics classes all the time!

  • @vtksolid9127
    @vtksolid9127 Před 2 lety +1

    wow u blew my mind i love the way you explain things

  • @WDCallahan
    @WDCallahan Před 2 lety +21

    I honestly thought that's what weight meant. All my life I said weight changes with forces, mass stays constant.

    • @rbarnes4076
      @rbarnes4076 Před 2 lety

      Ahh.. you listened in science class. Well done!
      I listened in high school science class, and started my college experience as a science major (now a software engineer). So I listened also.. but SO many people haven't been exposed to these ideas. It is why this channel is so wonderful.

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety +3

      Mass does stay constant. Weight can definitely change. You're correct there. Weight just isn't going to change on different floors of a building or in an elevator. You have to get _miles_ above the surface before you'll notice a difference in weight. See the pinned comment for more details.

    • @bradleysmith9431
      @bradleysmith9431 Před 2 lety

      Imagine if we were to walk around on jupiter.. our mass is the same as it was on earth, but we would weigh more on jupiter..??? 🤯

    • @andresvillarreal9271
      @andresvillarreal9271 Před 2 lety +1

      @@ScienceAsylum This may be true if you use your definitions taken from dictionaries. But if you are a true scientist you know that dictionaries are a garbage place to look for scientific terms and concepts.

    • @SIM2014
      @SIM2014 Před 2 lety

      No. That's what Nick's clone would say!
      [Nick: Now let's weigh in on this thing called 'relativistic' mass crazies!😁]

  • @lambdaprog
    @lambdaprog Před 2 lety +23

    Reminds me of the first time when I learned that mass and weight are different things, back in high school in the 90s. Much needed for the new generations.

    • @Critical3rror
      @Critical3rror Před 2 lety

      I was taught the difference between mass and weight back in middle school. Also the science channel. Really there is no excuse to not know, it's literally just basic physics.

  • @meysamghahremaninejad6809

    This is a very clever video right from the title! I salute you sir!

  • @simonwiltshire7089
    @simonwiltshire7089 Před 2 lety +1

    What a fantastic post!!!! thank you :)

  • @rtg_onefourtwoeightfiveseven

    1:19 I love the way that Nerd Clone always looks at the camera after saying something technically correct.

  • @raj-m
    @raj-m Před 2 lety +6

    Didn't encounter this question yet but thank you for making my concept more clear.❤️

  • @Let_The_James_Begin
    @Let_The_James_Begin Před 2 lety +2

    Hey! I have a bone to pick! I was relegated to watching a rerun because you haven't posted a video in three weeks even though you usually do one every month. (P.S. I still enjoyed it)

  • @bok..
    @bok.. Před 2 lety +7

    wow i just found you through your other channel where you talked about autism, i was diagnosed later than usual as well and it was tough. Seeing what you have achieved here and your great communication skills it gives me some hope :)

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety

      Being as functional as I am today took a lifetime of work, practice, and self training.

  • @jazzseba
    @jazzseba Před 2 lety +3

    I didn't realize the importance of knowing these concepts until I found this channel! there's no words to describe this "THANK YOU!" that i'm feeling!

  • @Zeusz310
    @Zeusz310 Před 2 lety +11

    In my language we use this definition: Weight is the force with which the body pushes the support or pulls the suspension. (when we translate our word for weight) But then you call gravitational force weight and our "weight" apparent weight.

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety +3

      That sounds a lot like the _engineers_ definition for "weight."

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety +2

      @Thijs Janssen Weight and gravity are the same thing in physics.

    • @En_theo
      @En_theo Před 2 lety +1

      @@ScienceAsylum
      "Well, technically..."

    • @swhbpocl
      @swhbpocl Před 2 lety +2

      Hmm, I also use the definition “weight” is a force caused by the product of mass and acceleration. With a scale using a spring, you measure a force by reading the compression or extraction distance of the spring. To really measure mass, a balance scale is needed where a known mass is balanced against the unknown mass. To work, the whole arrangement need to be under the same acceleration. As we are standing on the earth or moon or any concentrates lump of matter having mass…

    • @adb012
      @adb012 Před 2 lety +1

      @@ScienceAsylum ... You should see the technical documents related with airplane design and testing including the certification requirements. They talk all the time about the aerodynamic loads to be all the time in equilibrium with inertial loads (instead of F=ma), about weight on the wheels (instead of normal force), and about how a 1G flight is unaccelerated but 0G is accelerated. Yuck!!! (and I am an aeronautical engineer and a pilot).

  • @sMASHsound
    @sMASHsound Před 2 lety +1

    that little throw away few seconds finnaly allowed me to know what 'normal' is in forces. and we alllll forget about buoyancy... most times.

  • @markm4952
    @markm4952 Před 2 lety +3

    Definitely keeping this in my video list for my class. Thank you so much

  • @mohammedal-haddad2652
    @mohammedal-haddad2652 Před 2 lety +14

    Thank you for explaining the difference between normal and perpendicular. I always wondered.

    • @Robert_McGarry_Poems
      @Robert_McGarry_Poems Před 2 lety

      But he only described the special case of euclidian space. Does true perpendicular actually exist???

    • @carultch
      @carultch Před 2 lety

      Normal in this context means the same thing as perpendicular. In the context of the normal force, the normal and lateral coordinates of a planar surface, and the normal line in optics, it means perpendicular.
      In the context of linear algebra, think of the idea unit vectors. Normal means divided by magnitude, so that its magnitude equals 1. In linear algebra, they prefer the term orthogonal to mean perpendicular. You might even see the two terms put together, as orthonormal. The ortho part indicates perpendicularity, and the normal part indicates unit length.

  • @MATYel1
    @MATYel1 Před 2 lety +1

    All the science stuff and all was really cool, but then I saw the TMNT shirt and I had tu sub. Great content!

  • @CATinBOOTS81
    @CATinBOOTS81 Před 2 lety +1

    Dr Nick, you're one of the best at explaining Physics. Would you consider making a series of video about Loop Quantum Gravity? Something about Loops as solution to the Wheeler-Devitt equation, Spin Networks, Volume as a quantum property of a node and Area as quantum property of a link, the emergence of "Space" from a Spin Network, Spin Foam and the emergence of "Time" from the evolution of a Spin Network. LQG is a very neglected topic, it's very hard to find good material...

  • @pasijutaulietuviuesas9174
    @pasijutaulietuviuesas9174 Před 2 lety +10

    I was confused after seeing the title but then realised that the word in my language that translates to weight actually doesn't translate to weight at all, at least according to this video.
    In Lithuanian, "weight" is translated as "svoris" and is used that way in linguistics, dictionaries, every day language, etc. That's the official translation. However, it seems that "weight" does not mean "svoris" according to this video. We use "svoris" to describe the force that an object affects another surface, say, the ground or the scale, which is what you called the "push". We use the word "sunkis" to describe the force that gravity pulls you downward with (or towards another mass). And "sunkis" translates to "heaviness" in English instead of "weight".
    So the official translation of "weight" actually doesn't mean weight in Lithuanian. And the official translation of "heaviness" actually should be the translation of "weight". Interesting how linguistics and physics can differ so much, especially when different languages are concerned.
    EDIT: After some digging, I found that it's English physicists that's to blame for the misconception of weight and the weird "mistranslation" between English and Lithuanian. The word "weight" comes from Old-Germanic "wegan" which comes from Proto-Indo-European "wegh". And it means to move, carry, lift. So English physicists incorrectly chose the word "weight" to represent the force of gravity when it should have represented the push force that objects affect surfaces such as the ground or the scales since it's exactly THAT force that ancient people felt when they came up with the word "wegh/wegan". Apparent weight should be THE weight and what is weight in physics should probably use another word. So maybe it's not the people who say scales measure weight who are wrong but rather physicists who chose the wrong word?

  • @x_xkitten15
    @x_xkitten15 Před 2 lety +5

    cool! thx for helping me in my 3rd secondary year dynamics
    keep it up man !

  • @antoniomaglione4101
    @antoniomaglione4101 Před 2 lety +4

    Wow. I thought I were doing an odd thing by placing the scale on a spring mattress and bouncing up and down, to see the different readings when going up and when going down. A digital scale doesn't work well, because their sampling rate is too low - one per second, or less.
    One similarly interesting experiment, is to take a GPS speed meter on a motor boat, and comparing the reading to the speed indicator of the boat, which indicates the speed relative to the water - it uses a small turbine in the water. Or comparing it to the wind speed. Speed is so much more relative than weight...
    Thanks for the video...

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety +3

      Yeah, it was really important that the scale was analog. A digital scale would have been a huge pain.

  • @kevinkent9194
    @kevinkent9194 Před 2 lety +1

    Thanks for the video.

  • @joelcraig9803
    @joelcraig9803 Před 2 lety +6

    3:03 HOLY F! The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy was right about flying!

  • @drewishaf
    @drewishaf Před 2 lety +4

    I've taken many physics courses in my engineering education and never had an issue with the idea of weight. We always calculated and described weight as the product of mass in the presence of a gravitational field. Weight is an object's mass multiplied by acceleration of gravity. Some of this seems to muddy that concept.

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety +1

      Sounds like you have a really great handle on what weight is 👍. This is _not_ common.

    • @chuckdeuces911
      @chuckdeuces911 Před 2 lety

      If you didn't notice that this channel is for people to learn not for knowledgeable people to humbly brag about how smart they already are so congrats you got an education to come to CZcams a flaunt.

    • @JasonB808
      @JasonB808 Před 2 lety

      Newtonian physics vs General Relativity. He is basically showing how acceleration is the same as gravity in the elevator experiment. The scale measure a compression force of the feet and the base. Manufacturers of scales use a standard weight. There is a actual weight that is measured to be exactly 1 pound or 1KG. Then the manufacturer uses that to calibrate the scale so that when we stand on it with the expected 1G of earth we can calculate our weight. But it’s not measuring weight, but the compression of the force of gravity of earth and the gravity of our bodies compressing the scale. The scale is then designed to represent that force as weight based on that standard weight it was calibrated to.

  • @thomastruthseeker
    @thomastruthseeker Před 2 lety +1

    Nick, i love ya! The way you explain things is perfect for a goofball like me! Keep being awesome!

  • @philliptoone
    @philliptoone Před 2 lety +7

    As a kid we liked to jump when the elevator started moving. You will either go up more or less than expected.

  • @danipent3550
    @danipent3550 Před 2 lety +16

    This channel is so good it literally explains physics in a fun and understandable way

    • @theotherguy6527
      @theotherguy6527 Před 2 lety

      IKR, this guy is great, he should add some near death experiences and occasional life threatening explosion. He will go down in history as one of the greats!

    • @psibarpsi
      @psibarpsi Před 2 lety +2

      Stop! Just stop using 'literally' in that incorrect manner.

    • @BlacksmithTWD
      @BlacksmithTWD Před 2 lety

      @@danipent3550 Not by me. The moment a word starts to also mean it's opposite it becomes a useless word, though of course if you have nothing to say to begin with it may not be bothering you.

    • @danipent3550
      @danipent3550 Před 2 lety

      @@psibarpsi I’m not English bruv

    • @danipent3550
      @danipent3550 Před 2 lety

      @@BlacksmithTWD I’m not English and I was using it as emphasis

  • @physforfun
    @physforfun Před 2 lety +6

    Good and illustrating video as always! What could be added regarding the old fashioned analogue scale, is the much higher weight measured once you step on it and before it stabilizes at static rest (I mean at the static floor now, not in the moving elevator). This is not a measuring error, it is in fact a true measure also due to sudden or moving load (not to be confused with impact loading) 🤓. Now, it's a shame the digital scales do not show the beauty of this as the added acceleration just when you step on the scale is not shown, at least not on my digital scale. The sudden or moving load is not equivalent to the static load measured at rest, even it's not an impact loading that is usually asociated with even shorter load duration.🤓keep up the good work, your videos are truly interesting and illustrates physics in a fascinating, educational and not to forget in a crazyfunny way!👍😊

    • @1boobtube
      @1boobtube Před 2 lety

      Physforfun, digital scales often have higher internal resolution and do averaging to reduce noise at the expense of display update rate. They can also do some tricks in the background to null out drift. Fwiw the load cells can be sensitive to shock loads.

    • @physforfun
      @physforfun Před 2 lety

      @@1boobtube ok, thanks- nice to know😊

  • @anonymous.youtuber
    @anonymous.youtuber Před 2 lety +1

    Another fantastic video ! I ❤️the science and I ❤️ the humor!

  • @ashleyboullt8731
    @ashleyboullt8731 Před 2 lety

    Such a great video!

  • @mr.curious1714
    @mr.curious1714 Před 2 lety +4

    Sir, you have cleared my confusion of mass and weight. Thanks Sir.
    I would say only one thing after viewing this [great] video - 'This is the best Science channel on CZcams for [crazy] people like me.'

  • @kakalimukherjee3297
    @kakalimukherjee3297 Před 2 lety +37

    Even a lot of engineering graduates don't understand these fundamentals. This video is gonna be a great help to high schoolers, I remember my own suffering trying to understand this two years ago XD

    • @Secret_Moon
      @Secret_Moon Před 2 lety +4

      Seriously? I recognized this on my own like in high school.

    • @brainboxanky1729
      @brainboxanky1729 Před 2 lety

      Ei je Mukherjee dada, egineering college er jawa jonno amader ke JEE dite hoy, tai amader ke ei sob portei hoy, nahole college e admission ki kore pabo??!! 😂

    • @kakalimukherjee3297
      @kakalimukherjee3297 Před 2 lety

      @@brainboxanky1729
      সবাই পরে কিন্তু কয়জন বোঝে😅

    • @raj-m
      @raj-m Před 2 lety +1

      @@brainboxanky1729 😍 বাংলা কমেন্ট ।
      আপনি কোন ক্লাস এ এখন?
      কোন জেলা?

    • @kakalimukherjee3297
      @kakalimukherjee3297 Před 2 lety

      @@raj-m
      এইতো JEE দিচ্ছি

  • @stevenclevenger9032
    @stevenclevenger9032 Před 2 lety +1

    I don't feel I need to for the simple fact that you did it for us. Thank you sir, great content

  • @jeffwilliamson2932
    @jeffwilliamson2932 Před 2 lety

    PROFESSOR!! I shouldn't say your last name here!! You inspired me with your physics 1 class and I passed the Civil PE in Water Resources & Environmental this past October. I think of you fondly, and often. The history of physics is still the best thing I've ever learned and I have you to thank for my career path. I found this channel while looking for you so that I might thank you.

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety +1

      I'm so glad to hear you're doing well! Thanks for looking me up. It's always nice to hear from past students.

  • @TheSenator007
    @TheSenator007 Před 2 lety +7

    As I child I thought it would be funny to jump onto a scale. The result was that the meter jumped up and that I gained some intuitive understanding of this.

  • @SkywalkerAni
    @SkywalkerAni Před 2 lety +10

    Huh, I didn't connect this in my mind till now, but Douglas Adams' thing that flying is throwing yourself at the ground and missing has a basis in reality.

    • @mikegale9757
      @mikegale9757 Před 2 lety +2

      Yeah. I think he has to get credit for that line. He certainly had a unique skill for concocting scientific parodies. There's a passage in one of his HHGTTG books about the anthropic principle, too. He explains it from the perspective of a puddle on the street that suddenly becomes self aware and conscious of its predicament. His improbability drive and restaurant at the edge of the universe are a bit of a stretch, but they're also based on actual science. I think he just loved to make people think while they are being entertained. Like Nick.

    • @walterbrown8694
      @walterbrown8694 Před 2 lety +1

      My flight instructor always told me the goal in flying is to learn to stay in the middle of the air, and don't go close to the edges except when you desire to terminate the flight.

    • @mikegale9757
      @mikegale9757 Před 2 lety

      @@walterbrown8694 Good advice.

  • @jonathanmartins7744
    @jonathanmartins7744 Před 2 lety +1

    best physics guy out there! Continue with the good job!

  • @clampchowder9569
    @clampchowder9569 Před 2 lety +1

    The symmetry of this new set up is something else. He's either in the middle right down the line between the walls of there's 2 of him one on each side.

  • @paulmichaelfreedman8334
    @paulmichaelfreedman8334 Před 2 lety +14

    I read the title.
    And immediately thought: "To prove Einstein right."
    haven't seen the video yet.

  • @Johnrich395
    @Johnrich395 Před 2 lety +3

    "Hey honey, I need your help for a video!"
    "Ok, what do you need me to do?"
    "Stand here while I push the bathroom scale against your back!"
    ...
    ...
    ...
    "Ooookaaaaaayy...."

  • @sleeeptube
    @sleeeptube Před 2 lety +1

    There seem to be at least three different definitions of the word "weight". 1) Mass m in kg (as understood by most people and intended to be measured by the bathroom scales) 2) Force of gravity, mg in Newtons, as defined by US/EU textbooks 3) Force applied to a support, m(g+p) in Newtons, as defined by some Eastern European textbooks.

    • @mayorb3366
      @mayorb3366 Před 2 lety

      My girlfriend has several definitions of "weight" also. I agree with all of them.

  • @Huntingslife1
    @Huntingslife1 Před 2 lety +1

    Great video! I have these talks with my two boys, all the time!👍😉

  • @justaguy6216
    @justaguy6216 Před 2 lety +5

    *Elevator barely has room*
    Me: *pulls up with a bathroom scale FOR SCIENCE*

  • @beauthestdane
    @beauthestdane Před 2 lety +3

    “There is an art to flying, or rather a knack. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.” - Douglas Adama

  • @Name-ps9fx
    @Name-ps9fx Před 2 lety +2

    You have some interesting characters on your staff. 💫🙇🏻

  • @chrissidiras
    @chrissidiras Před 2 lety +3

    Your videos are becoming more and more pieces of art.

  • @ProCoderIO
    @ProCoderIO Před 2 lety +4

    “The channel where you learn about physics and have fun doing it!”
    All of CZcams should do this.

  • @drewdavis2392
    @drewdavis2392 Před 2 lety +5

    "There is an art to flying, or rather a knack. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss." -- Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

  • @steveschein2619
    @steveschein2619 Před 2 lety

    So much for the bringing up the distinction between mass and weight.

  • @lwazicembi6481
    @lwazicembi6481 Před rokem +1

    Surprisingly I have always explained how bathroom scales work the same way. Nice video.

  • @foxhound1008
    @foxhound1008 Před 2 lety +4

    I will agree, you can’t feel “weight” what you feel is the normal force for the required acceleration. As in an aircraft, in a pull-up, “pulling gs” what your are feeling is the normal force, being provided by the seat of the aircraft, to accelerate you. Hence, if you are sitting on a scale in the aircraft you will see the required force to accelerate you with the aircrafts changing flight path (velocity)

    • @AFmedic
      @AFmedic Před 2 lety

      I have to disagree with you! If some fat ass (correction - "massive") person stands on my foot, I definitely feel his/her weight.

    • @foxhound1008
      @foxhound1008 Před 2 lety +2

      @@AFmedic what you are feeling is the floor not only accelerating your mass, but the mass of the “fat ass”. The force is transmitted from the floor, thru your foot, to the fat ass.

    • @antred11
      @antred11 Před 2 lety

      Actually you do feel weight, because technically "weight" is a force. What people colloquially refer to as "weight" is actually "mass".

    • @carultch
      @carultch Před 2 lety

      @@antred11 It depends on how you define weight. Most people learn that weight is the pull of gravity, and in that case, you CANNOT feel your weight. You cannot feel the difference between accelerating through deep space at 9.8 m/s^2, and standing stationary in Earth's gravitational field of 9.8 N/kg. You feel the constraint force that keep you at rest in your immediate environment, and you instinctively assume the constraint force opposes your weight.
      If instead, you define weight as your reaction to a constraint force, then indeed you do feel it. In any case, you ultimately feel constraint forces, and you cannot feel the force of gravity.

  • @JackBlackNinja
    @JackBlackNinja Před 2 lety +3

    1 minute in and this is already the exact video I needed today. Last week I realized that astronauts experience serious gravity being ostensibly weightless and that sent me down a gravitational rabbit hole that this video just capped off.

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety +2

      Glad I could help 🤓

    • @olmostgudinaf8100
      @olmostgudinaf8100 Před 2 lety +1

      "down a gravitational rabbit hole" - the official term is "gravity well" 😁

  • @alexvilonyay8597
    @alexvilonyay8597 Před 2 lety +1

    It's always nice to get a refresher on physics! Maybe one day you can do some equations and build up a small course! I would love to relearn and learn some new stuff from the asylum!

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety

      Physics Girl did a whole playlist of the basics: czcams.com/play/PLGO_AWB1C4GQz6JF3-0yZHpoKfqZb7O5z.html (if you're interested)

  • @nobody_7580
    @nobody_7580 Před rokem +1

    Its like two days I find your page and I have a lots of exams but I don't care and I just watch your videos 😁👌🏻so nice video ♥ you show the real since🤝🏻

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před rokem

      Thanks! (but, also, my videos will be here when your exams are over 🙂.)

  • @fep_ptcp883
    @fep_ptcp883 Před 2 lety +5

    If you turn the scale upside down, you can measure the force of the Earth on you (unsurprisingly identical to your force on Earth)

    • @incription
      @incription Před 2 lety

      you don't exert a force on the earth at all, because then they would cancel each other out - "gravity" that causes your weight is caused by your acceleration from the earth pushing you up to stop you from falling

    • @YvesDautremay
      @YvesDautremay Před 2 lety +1

      @@incription Ever heard of Newton 3rd law ?

    • @incription
      @incription Před 2 lety +1

      @@YvesDautremay newton's third law only holds in euclidean space, but because of gravity, it's doesn't, right?

  • @xanadu1215
    @xanadu1215 Před 2 lety +11

    Your videos are awesome.
    Thank you very much. Now I’m going to put my scale in a swimming pool and see what happens next.

    • @Robert_McGarry_Poems
      @Robert_McGarry_Poems Před 2 lety +1

      Boom! Kicking it up a notch...

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety +4

      Make sure it's an analog one! (Honestly, I had planned to do this for the buoyancy part of the video, but ran out of time.)

    • @vincemarenger7122
      @vincemarenger7122 Před 2 lety +1

      That's the science spirit right here !

  • @johndoe9659
    @johndoe9659 Před 2 lety

    At 4:20 it would have been useful to mention that you are going DOWN with the elevator. Elevators are used to go *up* more often than they are used to gown down and, those people who use them downwards are almost always using them FIRST in the upwards direction. Hence, the assumed direction is upwards unless stated otherwise.

  • @CatFish107
    @CatFish107 Před rokem

    For conceptualizing orbits, I like to think the object is not just falling straight down, but that is cooking along with enough horizontal component to its velocity that misses, and continues to fall. Go faster in the horizontal, miss by more, have a higher orbit. Go slower, don't miss, and that's where you need to start thinking about all kinds of interesting interactions.

  • @ThatTimeTheThingHappened
    @ThatTimeTheThingHappened Před 2 lety +9

    I’ve had to explain this to my students so many times and they think I’m crazy because no one else explains it this way.

  • @yoelicon7283
    @yoelicon7283 Před 2 lety +3

    Till this day I don't regret ever subscribing!

  • @3DJapan
    @3DJapan Před 2 lety +2

    3:02 "Flying is easy, just throw yourself at the ground and miss" --Douglas Adams

  • @summ1969
    @summ1969 Před 2 lety

    A nice additional touch would be measuring your weight while in L cm of water - showing the scale readings (assuming a mechanical scale) changes as water is poured in.

    • @ScienceAsylum
      @ScienceAsylum  Před 2 lety

      This was actually part of the original plan, but I ran out of time.

  • @adb012
    @adb012 Před 2 lety +8

    Actually (nerd clone here) the scale measures the normal force with which YOU push on the scale. Yes, it has equal in magnitude to the normal force with which the scale pushes on you because they are an action-and-reaction pair, but still. The scale can only measure a force acting on it, not a force acting on you. Which is another very good reason why a scale could never measure your weight (which also acts on you, not on the scale).
    Brilliant video.

    • @tenormdness
      @tenormdness Před 2 lety

      Exactly lol

    • @chuckdeuces911
      @chuckdeuces911 Před 2 lety +1

      What a waste of a comment. This is for regular people to learn what they haven't it's not a channel for 'experts'..

    • @diablo.the.cheater
      @diablo.the.cheater Před 2 lety

      @@chuckdeuces911 What a waste of a comment. This is for people interested in science to learn cool factoids, not for idiots to be shaming people that add even more factoids

  • @JohnWinquist
    @JohnWinquist Před 2 lety +3

    Space Clone might want to have his propulsion mechanism checked. Green could be a warning sign.

  • @thefoolsgold
    @thefoolsgold Před 2 lety

    Any chance we get a video on the whole buoyancy thing? Never even though of that and sounds really interesting.

  • @kamikeserpentail3778
    @kamikeserpentail3778 Před 2 lety

    Having pushed on a scale with my hand, it was quickly obvious that it wasn't measuring weight.
    But given the regular context it is meant to be used, across generally consistent frames of reference, one can note the changing variable.

  • @seanspartan2023
    @seanspartan2023 Před 2 lety +3

    "Falling, but missing..."
    Is that a Douglas Adams reference?

  • @betazep
    @betazep Před 2 lety +3

    😂 Literally snorted after the sea shells comment…

  • @AmritGrewal31
    @AmritGrewal31 Před 2 lety +2

    My God
    I had always wondered but never got an answer. So thank you

  • @thibautklinger5178
    @thibautklinger5178 Před 2 lety

    Hi Nick,
    Do you accept video suggestions? If yes I think magnetic monopoles might be an interesting topic