LESSON H5P - Loads and Forces
The absolute basics. And a practical lesson about our bodies.
Can you explain?
Can you answer the following questions? If you are doing this course under a supervision you may be asked to provide the answers as your teacher deems fit.
Apart from providing the answers to the following, could you explain how all these phenomena relate to robotics and any other engineering fields?
1. Why are the forces exerted on the outside world by the limbs of our bodies usually much smaller than the forces exerted by muscles inside the body?
2. Explain why the forces in our joints are several times larger than the forces we exert on the outside world with our limbs. Can these forces be even greater than muscle forces?
3. Certain types of dinosaurs were bipedal (walked on two legs). What is a good reason that these creatures invariably had long tails if they had long necks?
4. Swimmers and athletes during competition need to go through certain postures at the beginning of the race. Consider the balance of the person and why start-offs are so important for races.
5. If the maximum force the biceps muscle can exert is 1000 N, can we pick up an object that weighs 1000 N? Explain your answer.
6. Suppose the biceps muscle was attached through tendons to the upper arm close to the elbow and the forearm near the wrist. What would be the advantages and disadvantages of this type of construction for the motion of the arm?
7. Explain one of the reasons why pregnant women often suffer from back strain late in their pregnancy.
