 |
| Public domain image. SOURCE. |
The name kinematics comes from the Greek kinesis, or "motion". It was coined by André-Marie Ampère (1775-1836) in 1834, in his Essai sur la philosophie de sciences, which outlined a new field he called "cinematique".
The person considered the founder of kinematics is not Ampère, however, but Franz Reuleaux (1829-1905). He described the field as "the study of the motion of bodies of every kind . . . and the study of the geometric representation of motion". It was during his lifetime that kinematics began to take off, and he published The Kinematics of Machinery: Outlines of a Theory of Machines, where he classified different types of mechanisms. Kinematics has a more modern role in machine design, including robots, automobiles, aircraft, satellites, electronics, and prostheses.
There are two main kinds of motion in kinematics: motion with constant velocity (velocity is speed and direction) and motion with constant acceleration. Because forces behind the motion are not considered, only constrained motion--motion where objects are moving on determinate paths unaffected by forces--of objects can be described (as opposed to unconstrained motion, which is affected by forces).
 |
| Position, velocity, acceleration. Public domain image. SOURCE. |
Notable Mechanical Engineer/Kinematicist:
Mary C. Boyce
Mary C. Boyce is the Head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Gail E. Kendall Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). She obtained a B.S. in Engineering Science and Mechanics from Virginia Tech, and an S.M. and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering at MIT. She has been awarded the NSF Presidential Young Investigator Award, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Applied Mechanics Young Investigator Award, and the Spira Award for Teaching among others, and is a Fellow at the American Academy of Mechanics, the ASME, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Her research focuses on polymers, elastomers (polymers with elastic properties), materials with lattice structures, natural materials, macromolecular networks, and mechanical properties.
**********
Sources:
http://www.batesville.k12.in.us/physics/phynet/mechanics/kinematics/OneDMotion.html
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/318099/kinematics
http://www.drphysics.com/syllabus/kinematics/kinematics.html
http://meche.mit.edu/people/index.html?id=11
http://mit.edu/pie/commission/boyce.html
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/kinematics
http://kmoddl.library.cornell.edu/what.php
http://www.solvephysics.com/problems_kinematics.shtml
**********
Ever heard of the field of kinematics before? (I hadn't, until I searched for something that began with "K".)
-----The Golden Eagle
21 comments:
I have never heard of this before but it is fascinating. Great post very interesting!
Ugh. It seems like my whole first semester of Physics in college was kenamatics of some sort. It was a bit too boring for me.
Ok, I'm on to you now:) You have at least a few degrees in science, yes?
I am so impressed!
First with you deciding to tackle science as your theme and second with the fabulous job you are doing and the care you are taking to get it right. I have enjoyed your posts.
I haven't heard of Kinematics before, but it sounds like a fascinating science. :)
Nice to see I'm not alone. Nope I haven't heard of it before. Very noble to research it for a proper K word. :)
Josh: Thank you!
Rusty: I'm sorry to hear it was boring. Nothing like having science ruined by a dull layout.
Mark: LOL. Nope!
Inger: Thank you so much. :) I'm glad you've enjoyed them!
Cherie: I find that it is, too.
Stacy: Thank you!
I have a buddy that started his own medical company. He holds a few patents involving prothesis. Specifically knee replacements.
I remember him talking about internal and external prosthesis kinematics.
It's amazing all the science that goes into such a thing. The biomechanics - the movement of the joint, the prothesis in the socket, etc.
Its been years since I read much about kenamatics. Thanks. Have to admit I forgot just about everything.
Like that I acrtually learned something from this K.
You just made Bill Nye the Science Guy proud. You should apply to Cornell, his alma mater, former school of Carl Sagan.
Criminy, that seemed complex. I felt like I had fallen off the top of a building and experienced constant acceleration until landing on my head. Ouch--hate it when that happens.
Lee
Places I Remember
Wrote By Rote
An A to Z Co-host blog
Wow, you must have researched a lot to find material for the A-Z. Science and discovery is so fascinating. There's endless fields of study.
Kinematics is a fabulously interesting branch of science (yes, I've heard of it).
Love the pic you chose for this post too.
It's interesting to see when an idea originated, and how it evolved. This is a very educational A to Z!
Eagle - That might have more to do with me than the layout, well, actually, I do have an issue with how all the sciences are presented in schools. There was almost no larger theme presented in most courses - and I've taken a lot of science courses - it's just like, "welcome to Physics, hey, let's talk about kinematics." Then we started doing math.
At the time, I wanted to study relativity and quantum mechanics and it was just chapter after chapter of really similar topics, rotational kinetics, then a week later, rotational kinematics... I do have unhappy memories, I just wanted more at the time, couldn't appreciate what I was learning when it was in front of me.
Fascinating stuff. i am learning so much! This is really good.
Jay: Wow. That's impressive--starting a company and acquiring patents!
Stephen: You're welcome. I hope this post could refresh your memory. :)
Sandra: Thanks!
Michael: I'd love to apply to Cornell . . . but whether I'm smart enough, I'm not sure. They have some super-genius graduates.
Arlee: That does sound painful!
Clarissa: I tried to make things as accurate as possible.
Yup. :)
Lynda: I agree.
I'm glad you like the pic!
Theresa: I had fun researching the history of different fields.
Rusty: Seems to illustrate the need for a better education system. Plenty of people keep on about how schools need better teachers and new ways of teaching--but the people and teachers who run the institutions just remain embedded in their old methods. Sigh.
Paul: Thank you! Glad to hear you're learning something new through these posts. :)
Totally happy that you found me and followed because I came to visit you! I just took the pledge that you had on your side bar! Thank you!!!
Thank you for stopping by my blog. Your field is amazing but far above my ability to take it all in on a blog hop. Suffice to say that my brothers and I loved to walk along rivers and do what we called 'rock hounding'. We collected interesting rocks; one in particular gave me the hope I needed during a crisis. Thanks
Feather
Melody-mae: You're welcome! And it's good to know I'm not the only one who's taken the Read It 1st Pledge. :)
Feather: You're very welcome!
Rocks are fascinating that way; a few have a special element with an emotional impact, don't they?
Post a Comment