Understanding the Dropping of the Spinning Ball Experiment
Bruce E. DePalma
Keywords: Spinning ball, inertia, gyroscope, pendulum, spinning bob
The beginning of this author's work with rotating objects began with moment of inertia measurements of constrained gyroscopes undergoing forced precession. The increased moments of inertia discovered for precessional motion were translated into a series of measurements on pendulums with rotating bobs. Although the discovery of the inertial effects associated with precession and pendulum oscillations were highly suggestive, this author greatly resisted attempts to force him to drop a rotating object for two reasons.
