So how long before Wookie tells us the answer?

 

12th post down...


I WIN!!!!!!!!!

 

I may be repeating someone elses anwswer, because I didnt read all the posts...

For the wheels on the plane to actually be moving at all... the plane would have to be moving foward...

But if the conveyor belt is moving the wheels in the opposite direction at exactly the same speed as the plane... then... The plane is simply draging the tires/wheels down the runway... the plane is moving and could potentially take flight.

SOOO... theoretically, the tires/wheels would be completly non-rotational, but the plane would be moving foward... thus, could take flight...

I'm not saying I'm non-commital, I'm saying there is not enough information.. life how much friction do the tires creat?
How much does the plane weigh?
How wide are the tires?
How many tires are there?
What is the PSI in the tires?

Simply put, not enough information to answer the question. Period.

 

I'm just slow but I agree.

 

I agree, Hersh. The implication is that the plane will remain stationary. If the plane moves forward, it will fly.

 

plenty of information is present. You just have to look from outside and see the big picture, once that is seen its very obvious. In fact, reading the first few lines even before the question presents the answer, you just have to form the reasoning then.

 

It will take off.
As the thrust pushes the plane down the conveyor at 1mph the conveyor goes in the other direction at 1mph so the wheels on the plane are moving at 2mph but the plane is moving forward. when it reaches 100mph or so it will take off. The wheels will be doing 200 mph though. Its simple when you think about it.

 

Net Wurker,
Your little red wagon example has to be the best parrabel for this so far.
You rock!

If anyone else still doesn't get it, then I don't think there is a simpler way to describe it than the Net Wurkers wagon example. They'll just have to think about it for a while.

The conveyer/tread mill does not create some magical paradox. It is only there to confuse you.

 

AHHH!!! I see now!..

Duh! Disregard my previous post.. I'm an idiot.

 

Takes off normally, except the tires are spinning twice as fast as they normally do when they leave the ground.

-Fatz

 

I don't like airplanes.

 

If your an idiot so am I!
I thought the exact same thing at first too. It took me two hours of contemplating it to figure it out.

 

Ok, first, the wheels on the airplane have absolutely NOTHING to do with IF the air plane will take off or not.

The ONLY thing the wheels on an airplane are for is to allow the airplane to move around and not drag itself on its belly and/or fuselage. It’s like a kickstand on a bike, it just holds it up and has nothing to do with how it will actually operate.

Now that we have that FACT taken care of lets move on.

Now, you must carefully read the “actual” question that was posted. You can not, or should not allow yourself to “read between the lines” or “assume”. Kind of like that Ebay post about the moron buying an Xbox box for $600. They DID NOT read…

So, here it is:

”A plane is standing on a runway that can move (some sort of band conveyer)” Ok, so you can ignore everything except a plane is standing on a runway. The conveyer is irrelevant as it has absolutely nothing to do with IF the plane can fly or not.

The plane moves in one direction, while the conveyer moves in the opposite direction.” Ok, The plane moves in one direction. That tells me nothing except the plane is moving. As I stated before you should not “read between the lines or assume”. Second, ignore the conveyer again, it’s a distraction since it has absolutely nothing to do with IF a plane can fly or not.

“This conveyer has a control system that tracks the plane speed and tunes the speed of the conveyer to be exactly the same (but in opposite direction)." Ok, you can ignore this complete passage since it has absolutely nothing to do with IF a plane can fly or not.

Remember I already explained the wheels of a plane only have ONE use and that is to hold the plane up…

Therefore, from “actually” reading and analyzing the “actual” data and information given, the answer to:

Will the plane take off or not?

Is, we do NOT have enough information to determine if it can or can not. The only facts, information and data we have, that are relevant, is:

” The plane moves in one direction”

That doesn’t tell me anything except the plane is moving. Is it moving at 5mph? Is it moving at 1” per hour? How fast is the plane moving? In what direction is the plane moving? Is it moving IN TO the air flow or is it moving AGAINST the air flow?

Those are the relevant questions that need to be answered in order to “actually” answer the original question.


So in conclusion the following answers are incorrect:

Yes the plane will fly
No the plane will not fly

 

Another way to look at the original question is to think about this question:

My truck is moving. Will I get a ticket? If so, what will I get a ticket for?

 

OK OK, I think I see what you are saying.
You are saying that if the same plane could take off on a regular run way under the same conditions then it would also take off on this conveyer.

But if it wasn't capable of flight on a regualr run way then it wouldn't take off on the conveyer either.

That is a fair analysis.

The conveyer neither aids to, nor renders the flight capabilities of any given wheeled air craft.