Everything2: Gyroscope

It is not exactly clear what Everything2 is about, but it is not Wikipedia, and so does not appear to have any requirement for assertions to be supported by reliable sources or consensus among contributors . The article about gyroscopes, is a good example of what that yields:

In the bicycle’s case, the gyroscope effect of the wheels will help keep the bicycle upright and resist falling over, because falling over would be a change in the rotational plane of the wheels. It also helps the bicycle maintain a course roughly straight ahead, because turning would also be a change in the rotational plane of the wheels, which allows a confident rider to take his hands off the handlebars.

Here we have more perpetuation of the misconception that spinning wheels somehow resist falling over and even turning. In reality, large external moments, from gravity and the rider, are applied that easily alter the angular momentum vector of each wheel.

I would try to contact Everything2 about this problem, but they required anyone to Log in or register to write something here or to contact authors, and I need another login id and password like I need a hole in my head.

2 thoughts on “Everything2: Gyroscope”

  1. Hello, I’m a longtime user of everything2. At the moment we’re something of an artefact of a bygone age when the internet was wild and free, with all the baggage that goes with that. Still, we did web 2.0 before it was cool and we may yet rise again…

    Anyway, I’ll pass your comments on to an editor and see what can be done.

    Like

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