{"id":2130,"date":"2025-07-17T06:55:08","date_gmt":"2025-07-17T06:55:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/2130\/"},"modified":"2025-07-17T06:55:08","modified_gmt":"2025-07-17T06:55:08","slug":"the-paradoxical-physics-behind-a-mechanism-that-shrinks-when-pulled","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/2130\/","title":{"rendered":"The Paradoxical Physics Behind a Mechanism That Shrinks When Pulled"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

Derek Muller<\/a>\u00a0and Gregor Cavlovic<\/a> of\u00a0Veritasium<\/a> explained the paradoxical physics of Hooke\u2019s Law<\/a>, which is behind a seemingly simple mechanism that counterintuitively shrinks when pulled. The device, invented by\u00a0Bas Overvelde<\/a>\u00a0and his\u00a0team<\/a>\u00a0at\u00a0AMOLF<\/a>\u00a0in\u00a0Amsterdam<\/a>, utilizes a system of springs that transfer energy based on the amount of stress applied to each end. When the device is pulled, one of the springs snaps open, transferring the weight and causing it to shrink.<\/p>\n

How an unlikely physics paradox controls these counterintuitive structures.<\/p>\n

Another theory they explored is known as Braess\u2019 Paradox<\/a>, which applies to other systems subject to force, such as road closures or electrical lines. The paradox lies in whether the solution makes things better or worse.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s now known as Braess\u2019s paradox and it is the reason why New York traffic got better after 42nd Street was closed on Earth Day. \u2026It turns out mathematicians actually modeled the whole city in 2008 and they found 12 roads that were redundant and could be cut to actually reduce traffic. And it\u2019s not only New York. The paradox showed up in Boston, London, Seoul. In fact, if you were to randomly add a new road to just about any city, you\u2019d have an equal chance of making the traffic better as worse.<\/p>\n

\n\tRelated Posts\n<\/p>\n

\t\t