RE: [asa] ICR's GENE project

It’s no huge mystery really. The period is pretty consistent in the range where sin(θ) ≈ θ, but when the angle becomes larger, the approximation no longer holds. In reality, the period does change continuously as the amplitude increases. It just changes very minutely at small angles.

Wikipedia has the details and equations under “Basic Principles” here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pendulum

Ken M.

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>>Almost without fail students "confirmed" Galileo's conclusion - in spite of the fact that it's wrong, & that period is independent of amplitude only for small oscillations>>
 
That's one I never heard. Tell me more.  I would guess that the period actually changes continuously as the amplitude increases; this due to the direction of the force vector continually changing.
 
Fascinating. I wish D. Lytle Wiggins had taught us that in my 1947 high school physics class!
 
Burgy
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