gravity

[Athena]

There appears to be some really smart people posting here. I am not one of them. I am more of an 8 year old in an old body. I have a question, like children have questions.

In a video of a simulated earthquake, I noticed the water in a fish bowl was rippling in circles. Could the physics of this circular rippling have anything to do with gravity?

[Jack]

There is no gravity. The earth sucks. ~Graffito

(sorry, I couldn't help myself...to redeem myself, I'm trying to dig up a good answer for you) :)

[Critter]

Probably has more to do with a CENTER of gravity...

[Jack]

A couple of things, in no particular order;
The circular motion of the wave is caused by the constraint of the fish bowl. In the open ocean, that same wave would be stretched out like a normal ocean wave.

The wave, on edge would look much like a slow sine wave, and is the result of the motion involved in tectonic shifting. Tapping on the side of the fishbowl would produce the same sort of waves.

None of this is directly due to gravity.

Would someone with a better grasp of physics and waveform creation bail me out here...

[Flip Jackson]

I don't know if it is gravity so much as the way liquids spread out force. When you tap the fish bowl, your finger exerts a force on the water through the bowl to the water. This force hits a number of water particles in different directions causing a wave.

That's the best I've got. Physics isn't my strong point. Some one correct me if need be. Please.

[Whodoe!]

There appears to be some really smart people posting here. I am not one of them. I am more of an 8 year old in an old body. I have a question, like children have questions.

This reminds me of the old 'Caveman Lawyer' skits from SNL. Very, very funny!

[Samildanach]

Actually in theory it could have a lot to do with gravity. In a real earthquake, large amounts of mass are moving which could in theory produce a localised gravimetric fluctuation.

[Starboy]

In a video of a simulated earthquake, I noticed the water in a fish bowl was rippling in circles. Could the physics of this circular rippling have anything to do with gravity?

Yes. A wave is a periodic system. Such systems require at least two states where each state uses a different form of energy. The states must be coupled in the sense that there must be a way for one form of energy to be transformed into the other form and back again. In the case of the wave there are two forms of energy, there is kinetic energy and potential energy. Kinetic Energy (K.E.) is energy of motion. In Newtonian system it is well computed by the formula K.E. = 1/2 m * v * v where m is the mass of the moving object and v is the velocity of the object (velocity is how far it will move in a given period of time, the larger the velocity the greater distance it will move in that same period of time). Potential energy (P.E.) is stored energy. In the wave system it is the energy that one must expend to move a given volume of water above sea level. As the wave moves past a given point in the water you have kinetic energy that lifts the water above the water level. As the water first starts moving up just off the water level it is at maximum velocity so it is at maximum kinetic energy. As the water lifts up that kinetic energy is converted into potential energy. The water stops moving up when all the kinetic energy is converted into potential energy. Since there is nothing holding the water up as soon as it stops moving up it will begin moving down. As it does so its potential energy will decrease but it will pick up speed so its kinetic energy will increase as it returns to sea level its velocity will be a maximum. As the water forms a tough it again slows down and potential energy is stored in the tough in the form of moving all the water out of the trough (so it must lift up that water in some other place. So the kinetic energy is coupled into the potential energy and it oscillates back and forth until the energy is expended by sound, friction with air and the water itself, or moving sand on the shore.

Starboy

[Athena]

Actually in theory it could have a lot to do with gravity. In a real earthquake, large amounts of mass are moving which could in theory produce a localised gravimetric fluctuation.

Samildanach, your suggestion is hot, considering we do not claim to know what causes gravity. That is why my mind jumped at the possible answer when I saw the water in a fish bowl, during an earthquake.

We have the debate of black matter. Does it exist or not? For there to be a rippling that causes gravity, there must be something to ripple. That would force the conclusion that there is dark matter right? Also, light doesn't travel in a vaccum right? So doesn't there have to be dark matter for light to travel?

When we drop a stone in water, the bigger the stone the stronger the ripples, right? This would explain why size makes a gravitation pull difference.

Mars lost its gravity and therefore, its atmosphere. If the planet stopped viberating, the ripples would stop. As the viberation slows down, the ripples would slow down. I really don't know what I am talking about, but it is fun. Like what if the universe had a life span?
What if the life span depended on viberating energy? What if, when a planet looses its energy it gets sucked into the next largest gravitional pull, this would increase the gravitational pull of that body. What if this how black holes happen?

Einstein the most important thing for us to have is imagination, and I sure have that.

[Jack]

light doesn't travel in a vaccum right?

If this were true, wouldn't the night sky look pretty black?

[RickSp]

Samildanach, your suggestion is hot, considering we do not claim to know what causes gravity. That is why my mind jumped at the possible answer when I saw the water in a fish bowl, during an earthquake.

We have the debate of black matter. Does it exist or not? For there to be a rippling that causes gravity, there must be something to ripple. That would force the conclusion that there is dark matter right? Also, light doesn't travel in a vaccum right? So doesn't there have to be dark matter for light to travel?

When we drop a stone in water, the bigger the stone the stronger the ripples, right? This would explain why size makes a gravitation pull difference.

Mars lost its gravity and therefore, its atmosphere. If the planet stopped viberating, the ripples would stop. As the viberation slows down, the ripples would slow down. I really don't know what I am talking about, but it is fun. Like what if the universe had a life span?
What if the life span depended on viberating energy? What if, when a planet looses its energy it gets sucked into the next largest gravitional pull, this would increase the gravitational pull of that body. What if this how black holes happen?

Einstein the most important thing for us to have is imagination, and I sure have that.

This is a joke right? Mars lost it's gravity? When did that happen? (In a cosmic poker game perhaps.) Light doesn't travel in a vaccum? Are you sure about that? (Maybe it travels in a Honda Prius.)

To address your original question, the free surface of the water in a goldfish bowl could indeed act like a dampened spring and cause the rippling that you mentioned. and yes, it needs gravity to make it work. (You need gravity just to keep the water in the goldfish bowl, for that matter.)

[Starboy]

When we drop a stone in water, the bigger the stone the stronger the ripples, right? This would explain why size makes a gravitation pull difference.

Athena, you weren’t kidding when you said you knew nothing about science. Take a balloon and a brick and drop them into water and tell me which makes more waves. You can make the balloon as big as you like.

Mars lost its gravity and therefore, its atmosphere.

Mars has gravity. What do you think is holding it together and keeping our space craft on the surface?

If the planet stopped viberating, the ripples would stop. As the viberation slows down, the ripples would slow down.

The earth has more geologic activity than Mars because earth has a liquid molten core. The core of Mars cooled a long time ago and is rock solid. The largest volcano in the solar system that we currently know of is on Mars. It is evidence that Mars had a molten core at one time and it is also evidence that the core is no longer molten. The molten core of the earth allows volcanic activity, a magnetic field and of course plate tectonics.

I really don't know what I am talking about, but it is fun. Like what if the universe had a life span? What if the life span depended on viberating energy? What if, when a planet looses its energy it gets sucked into the next largest gravitional pull, this would increase the gravitational pull of that body. What if this how black holes happen?

Your curiosity and excitement is great. But for some reason you want to cast everything as a vibration. You are like the person who only knows how to use a hammer. To such a person everything looks like a nail. Natural phenomena are much richer than just vibrations. You should take the time to learn science some time.

Einstein the most important thing for us to have is imagination, and I sure have that.

He would also have told you that imagination is not enough. You must have some idea as to what you are talking about. It is great that you are curious. Use that curiosity to go learn more about it.

Starboy