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Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology

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Subject:
From:
Anthony N Morgan <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Tue, 21 Sep 1999 09:11:13 +0200
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Elias Gonzalez San Juan wrote:

> ............. let me
> remind you that according to the LAWS of physics, some beetles and bumblebees
> would not be able fly because their body weight is too large for their small wings.
> Perhaps those insects have never heard about those laws because they do FLY, and
> very well indeed.

The remark that lead to the myth above has been regreted ever since by
the gent who voiced it (can't find my reference at the moment)--- a
relatively recent article in New Scientist explains fully the
aerodynamics of *impossible* bumble bee flight (again can't find my
reference at the moment, apologies :-( ) it apparently has to do with
SCALE ie. the aerodynamics of full-size aircraft is not the same as for
model aircraft, which is not the same as for micro-size aircraft ie.
bees. The magic factor is the so-called reynolds number.(duh!!) The
bee/beetle etc can do a trick with its wings that bigger craft cannot -
it can cause a form of vortex that increases the amount of lift
available for a given wing area that is substantially higher than
"conventional aerodynamics" would predict.

cheers Tony

--
Anthony N Morgan,
Førsteammanuensis
Institutt for Elektroteknikk
Høgskolen i Sør-Trøndelag
N-7004 Trondheim, Norway
[log in to unmask]
Tlf. 73 55 96 04
Fax. 73 55 95 81

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