EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT SUPER SPEED...
LIMITATIONSAlthough the power of super speed looks pretty on the surface, there are some limitations to it...
Air is not empty: it is mainly comprised of nitrogen (78%), oxygen (21%) and argon (1%) as well as other particles, such as dust. When we move past them, we are rubbing against these particles, which creates friction. In turn, this friction creates heat. The faster we move, the more friction we produce and, therefore, the more heat generated. So what would happen to this heat if we were to travel at, say, 10,000 miles per hour (mph)? Due to such high speeds, the heat produced would be far too great for our skin to withstand and our whole body would burn up. In fact, when travelling at such high speeds, the dust particles would create so much friction as to give us tiny little cuts all over our bodies. It takes humans approximately one-fifth of a second to react to the things we see: Speed x Time = Distance 0.2s x 10,000mph = 0.5 miles If we travelled at 10,000mph, we would have moved past or crashed through the object we are seeing by approximately half a mile. |
what is wrong with human legs?In comparison to other animals, the human race is rather physically slow. Why? Originally, our feet were designed to climb trees and have only adapted to walking upright in the last 5 million years. On the other hand, other animals have been evolving into bipedal organisms for hundreds and millions of years.
For this reason, scientists and engineers are now basing their manufacture of prosthetic legs, not on human legs, but on the legs of ostriches. Ostriches are able to travel at high speeds of up to 40mph while exerting the same amount of force that humans do but using up half the amount of energy. The reason for this is because ostriches have elastic tendons that are able to use the energy, exerted when their foot hits the ground, to propel the foot forward on the next step. Similarly, velociraptors did the same thing. This is why engineers in South Korea, when creating a super fast bipedal robot, based it on the legs of a Velociraptor. Check this out at |
is super speed possible for humans?Genetic Manipulation
Scientists have suppressed a gene in mice called 'NCOR1'. This gene inhibits muscle growth and so, when it was turned off, the mice grew muscle that was much larger, more dense and had a greater number of mitochondria than normal mice. The genetically mutated mice were able to run twice as fast and for twice the amount of time. The Best Clothing for Super Speed
Most sportswear is made out of materials that have a high Lycra content due to its elasticity. Lycra is a synthetic fibre made up of a long chain of polymers, known as polyurethane, which is made from the reaction between polyester with diisocyanate. This synthetic polymer is an elastomer, which means that it can be stretched to a certain length as well as recoil back. The polymer strands are composed of amorphous segments, which has a random molecular structure, and rigid segments. These interact and soften the fibres. When the fibres are stretched, because of a force, the bonds in the rigid segment are broken and amorphous segments are lengthened. Once the force is removed, the fibre recoils. |