Another one of those "Get the Greatest Body You Could Ever Imagine in One Short Week" commercials. This particular piece of machinery is advertised as "Doing twice the work in one effortless movement." This strikes me as being impossible in terms of exercise. How can you perform any body-building exercise that accomplishes twice the work, but is still defined as 'effortless'? Is this hype or am I missing something here?

P.T. Barnum said there's one born every minute, and two to catch him. If the whole thing is a scam, why worry about a bit of logic? I'm feeling so mellow, I won't discuss the "V" drugs guaranteed to make a man look as though he had a six D cell flashlight in his pocket. Actually I knew a guy who was equipped like that, but got no pleasure from the fact. The real tough babes that worked in the McLean Hospital in the
Depression used to gang up on him, to show his developement
to new employees. But none of them wanted a test drive.
I once posted about the student nurse who told me about
the finger in the ear. She also said she'd rather be tickled to death than clubbed to death. Again, no offer of a test.
I learned a lot at the McLean. While on the switchboard at night, I could borrow books from the medical library.
My mind was a webbing of Freud und Krafft-Ebing. But none of the rest of the limerick applied. Incidentally one morning just before dawn in early April, I looked out the front window, and saw thousands of Lumbaricus terrestris copulating. Never have seen that since. A real Rite of Spring. Grotesque music, please, Maestro Stravinsky.

If I saw a pair of Lumbaricus terrestris copulating, I sure as heck wouldn't know that I was watching a pair of Lumbaricus terrestris copulating. I might recognize the copulation part of the equation.

Google asked me if I meant lumbricus, and then returned sites about earthworms, which was what I thought when I read Bill's post.

Dear TEd: Oh, my aching lumbaricus! I had a terrible time
finding the Latin taxonomic term, starting for human parasite
Ascaris lumbricoides. Sorry to have l3e you astray.
Speaking of earth worms. When I was living in Virginia,
rainsorms would leave hundreds of worms dying in the road, because their burrows had filled with water, and they had
possible lost so much electrolyte that they died. But I never
saw any bird eat them I wonder whay.

Now that you bring that up Bill, it's true. I've seen the same thing happen and it dawns on me that you right, there has never been a slew of birds eating up the slew of worms.

I wonder why.

I don't think that they like 'em all cleaned up. worms are better with a bit 'o dirt on 'em....

never been a slew of birds eating up the slew of worms.
several possible explanations spring to mind:
a.You would agree that a big slew of worms is a rare event in itself. Let's say probability 0.001. If the probability of a slew of birds is the same, the joint probability is 1 millionths, i.e. rather unlikely.
b.The buildup of a large accumulation of worms was only possible because birds were absent at the moment.
c.As far as I am concerned, my appetite is not stimulated by a plate filled to the brim.

"How can you perform any body-building exercise that accomplishes twice the work, but is still defined as 'effortless'?"

You can't, of course. Work is work. You can make something easier to accomplish, but it will never be less work in reality. Walking up stairs is easier than jumping that high, but the distance you travel is greater. Having a gigantic steering wheel would mean you wouldn't crank it as far to turn a corner, but it's harder to turn than a tiny little one, which you would, however, have to turn and turn and turn to get the same effect.

Want to know more? CALL this toll free number NOW and get a free ginsu knife (1-800-WISE-ASS). Or a party ring, with six interchangeable simulated stones, depending on which operator is standing by.

You can't, of course. Work is work. You can make something easier to accomplish, but it will never be less work in reality. Walking up stairs is easier than jumping that high, but the distance you travel is greater.

Although not commonly *conceived as such, isn't work a formulae; weight*height*distance='foot lbs.'?

"Although not commonly *conceived as such, isn't work a formulae; weight*height*distance='foot lbs.'?"

Uh oh. Now I'm in over my head. I learned this stuff so long ago I don't know the official by God explanation any more. I can just see how it works. My daughter probably knows the formula, bein' a physics whiz and all, but I'm afraid to ask.

...but I'm afraid to ask.

It sounds like too much work.

To put it simply, in Mechanics, Work is force multiplied by distance. The Work done in lifting a weight from the ground is equal to the weight in pounds times the height lifted in feet giving an answer in foot-pounds (using old money here!). The force you exert in lifting the weight is in opposition to the vertical force of gravity that is trying to make it drop again. How far you moved the weight horizontally doesn’t affect the work done in raising it. The force used in moving horizontally has to overcome friction and air resistance. It is easier to visualise if you think of the lifting and moving actions being performed by a crane rather than by a person.

"It is easier to visualise if you think of the lifting and moving actions being performed by a crane rather than by a person. "

But why would any self-respecting wetlands bird waste its time lifting.... oh. Yes. Yes, you're absolutely right.

Cranes are good - so long as they don't block your chimney I guess. We don't get them here. We get Herons though - they're horrid - spend their time lifting my goldfish.

How far you moved the weight horizontally doesn’t affect the work done in raising it.

Sounds accurate, but, then... "time spent exerting the opposing force" should count... somehow...

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... it's the same *reason one runs to avoid time spent in the rain... assuming being 'drier' is the goal, of course.

>it's the same *reason one runs to avoid time spent in the rain..

but.. but.. don't you encounter more drops that way?

in Mechanics, Work is force multiplied by distance. That's right, but this sort of work, unfortunately is not what earns you top salaries. There would be rather more social justice if it were so.

but.. but.. don't you encounter more drops that way?

...not until you are moving faster than the falling rain.