Physics and Poetry

[Ecurb]

Helping my son Shane with his 7th grade science homework led to these two poems:


REFLECTIONS ON MR. SCHWARTZ' SCIENCE CLASS

Apples knew not which way to fall,
Objects in motion were apt to stall,
Reactions were opposite, but not equal,
(If this verse is confusing, read the sequel)

Things accelerated when no force
Acted upon them (out of balance, of course)
In short, nature's laws weren't so high fallutin'
Before being discovered by Sir Isaac Newton


SIMPLE MACHINES AND WHY I HATE 'EM

"Simple machines, I maintain," said Shane,
"Aren't simple at all, take the inclined plane,
You must divide height by length by force,
Then multiply by X, of course,
Factor by Y, add friction, times wedge,
To the pulley's power (I allege),
Add in wheel and axle, cam plus gear,
Multiply levers as well, I fear,
Then, if the answer means nothing to you,
Call up Mr. Schwartz and say, 'Go *&$#*!' "

[AuntShecky]

These are cute, though the meter's slightly off in a couple of lines. That's forgivable in humorous verse.

You and your son might get a kick out of "Cartoon Physics," a short poem by Nick Flynn. I don't know if it's available online, but you can find it in a wonderful short paperback called "How to Eat a Poem," with a foreword by former U.S. Poet Laureate Ted Kooser.

[mona amon]

This brought a smile to my face! :D I hope it succeeded with Shane.

[Nick Capozzoli]

[QUOTE=Ecurb;1240334]Helping my son Shane with his 7th grade science homework led to these two poems:


Things accelerated when no force
Acted upon them (out of balance, of course)
In short, nature's laws weren't so high fallutin'
Before being discovered by Sir Isaac Newton

Nice and adept phrasing. A pleasure to read these poems!

However I can't really ignore what you are actually saying in the lines
I've quoted. Whatever you or Shane may think or want to believe about
Newton's laws of motion, you can't have accelerated motion of bodies
without the influence of a force acting on them.

To me this is a problem with your poem.

[Ecurb]

Well, perhaps apples fell downward prior to Newton, too. The laws don't have any Im pact on the apple; its the other way around. Ecurb posting on my phone from overseas.