Joe:
can't say I am SURE of the answers to all your musings, but I'll offer my
2c:
you said...
Why is it that narrow tires work a hell
of alot better than wide tires
on the slippery non wet road surfaces of winter???
I see two possible contributing factors:
-- the long, narrow contact patch of narrow tires makes the bike like to go
straight (as opposed to a wider contact patch liking to turn). Ice offers a
lower coefficient of friction than typical road surface, therefore a
tendency to oversteer and understeer; the long contact patches resist that.
-- narrow tires typically offer more sidewall resistance (less flex) than
wide tires for the same load, because there is more sidewall rubber along
the length of the contact patch. Therefore-- for the same mass-loading of
the tire (and same tire inflation pressure), a narrow tire will have a
slightly SMALLER contact patch than a wide tire. Since you have the same
load on a smaller contact patch, you will have more pounds-per-square-inch
exerted on the contact patch, which provides a greater friction force (more
grip).
you said...
why is it that cars stop faster and straighter on
ice by using modern electronics to take control of
an important function like braking??
When brakes are applied on slippery surfaces (like ice), too much braking
force tends to lock-up the wheels with the least traction. A tire on a
locked-up wheel is operating in the "sliding-friction" regime, which means
it has less grip than a rolling tire. This means that any tires that
haven't "locked-up" are usually not getting as much braking force as they
could use, because other tires are sliding and the operator must decrease
the braking pressure. Modern braking electronics can do two things:
-- they "pulse" the brake pressure very rapidly, so that the tires don't
stay in the "sliding-friction" (skidding) regime but tiny fractions of a
second, and...
-- (some)sense wheelspeed, and apply more braking power to the wheels that
are moving the fastest, and less to wheels that are beginning to lock.
(Of course, TC works just about the same way.)
you said...
Why is it that cat taste like chicken?
-- you are what you eat. Many cats (including mine) eat lots of chicken.
Note that consumption of cats can make a pussy out of you! You are what you
eat.
Why did my daughter use a Carrillo rod
for her crafts???
guesses:
-- your daughter has inherited great taste in hardware--??
-- she couldn't find your wife's jewelery, and (like a typical woman) went
for the most valuable thing she could lay her hands on--??
I won't attempt to answer the last two, as they seem to both be
philosophical in nature, and I freely admit to being not much good at that.
Russ, #1226B
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