That makes a lot more sense now; thanks for the explanation. You're right about the center of rotation.

 

A problem with many many science classes is that too much time is spent teaching how to calculate things, and too little time is spent teaching what these things actually represent in the real world.

 

This is really interesting to me. I have never had any type of formal education in dynamics, so I may be way off on this, but I can't resist asking what may be a foolish question.

The original question asks for the center of rotation at the moment the rod is kicked. If the center was fixed, say on a pin, obviously it would rotate about the center. But, since it isn't, would not the acceleration of the rod at the moment it was kicked cause it to skid across the ice for a distance until the centrifugal force caused it to stabilize? If so, does that not change the center of mass for that moment?

 

It just goes to prove that the angle of the dangle is directly proportional to the.....

...Oops! Sorry. Wrong theory.

 

L/2

(or, "L over 2")

 

L/2
L over 2
L divided by 2

All the same thing,,,

 

Steve, I don't have the answer to your question but I keep watching your avatar to see if it's going to lick the screen again.

 

I fear it may be a screen-licker type of question that I asked.

 

Not just science classes, most classes. My finance class is a bunch of equations that don't make sense and aren't related to real life. Management is a joke of asinine theories that only work in a hypothetical world of big corporations. I think people would get a lot more out of education if it was applied to real life.

Rant over. Its exam week ; just needed to vent a little.

 

Being one of those people who did all their learning on their own, I have to agree with the "as it pertains to real life" idea.