A minute ago I accidentally dropped three odd-shaped objects on the floor. If they had bounced in any of three directions, they would have encountered a hard flat surface and stopped conveniently near my feet. If they bounced in the fourth direction, they would be seeking shelter in a hard-to-get area and I would need a large pole, a search and rescue dog, and the Cirque de Soleil to get to them.
All three odd-shaped objects ran for cover in the hard-to-get spot. I am considering leaving them there forever.
This accidental experiment demonstrates one of the laws of physics you rarely hear about: Dropped objects seek the point of least accessibility. You can try it yourself by dropping an orange on the ground anywhere near a parked automobile. The orange will take off toward that parked car like a rabbit in a slingshot, even if the parked car is at the top of a steep hill. The law of gravity does not apply in these situations.
Another rarely discussed aspect of physics is the law of misplaced keys. When you can’t readily find your keys in the house, you will not later discover them on top of some obvious surface such as a countertop or a dresser. Nor will they be in the pocket of whatever clothing you recently wore. Keys scamper to their hiding places whenever their owner becomes preoccupied doing something else, such as chasing an orange that is heading toward a parked car. In that moment of inattentiveness, the keys make a beeline for the least likely location that anyone would ever look. For example, you might find them months later in a jar of mayonnaise in your cupboard, or taped to the back of an old-fashioned toilet in an Italian restaurant down the street.
Do you have any other laws of physics to share?
If you like a show it will be canceled. If you don't, it will run for a decade or three.
Posted by: Liz | March 25, 2008 at 06:31 PM
Shopping for a dress when you are feeling rich at the moment.The odds against finding something of interest diminish rapidly, the more determined you are to buy on that particular day. And a day dedicated to window shopping would leave you wishing it was on of your richer days...
I now try and fool myself into thinking I don't need to buy anything but keep an eye out,just in case...
Posted by: Sapna | October 24, 2007 at 09:03 AM
Shopping for a dress when you are feeling rich at the moment.The odds against finding something of interest diminish rapidly, the more determined you are to buy on that particular day. And a day dedicated to window shopping would leave you wishing it was on of your richer days...
I now try and fool myself into thinking I don't need to buy anything but keep an eye out,just in case...
Posted by: Sapna | October 24, 2007 at 09:03 AM
Shopping for a dress when you are feeling rich at the moment.The odds against finding something of interest diminish rapidly, the more determined you are to buy on that particular day. And a day dedicated to window shopping would leave you wishing it was on of your richer days...
I now try and fool myself into thinking I don't need to buy anything but keep an eye out,just in case...
Posted by: Sapna | October 24, 2007 at 08:14 AM
I’m so glad that I have found your post. I have been unsure of this topic for some time and you have enabled me to understand it a whole lot better. I really appreciate it. I was reading a post a while ago that helped me in the same way that yours has.
Posted by: law of attraction book | October 22, 2007 at 07:39 PM
Hi Scott. I wonder what's your take on Eternal Return theory. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eternal_return
I thought you might find that interesting.
Posted by: trond | September 08, 2007 at 06:41 AM
Leak proof seals will...
Self Starters won't...
Posted by: David Hardingham | August 03, 2007 at 03:49 AM
Whenever you have real serious work, and you are late for office,
The human being superior in position to you, will always be present on time, and look at you.
Posted by: Nin | July 26, 2007 at 05:41 AM
BML: Biological Magnetic Line
No matter where you are sitting, some biological organism (child, adult, cat, dog, etc) will wander in (or hop on the coffee table) and place itself in the precise spot to block your view of the TV.
Posted by: Joe | May 10, 2007 at 04:24 PM
this is something that musicians will notice more than most people. if a completely disentangled cable is plugged in at both ends it will still have a knot in the middle by the end of the gig, not a complex messy thats the result of a gig chaos, but the basic one loop knot that REQUIRES at least one end to be free
Posted by: alexei | May 01, 2007 at 05:38 PM
i was young, i was going for a dance class, i was getting into my dad's car, i was in my flip flops, i was getting into my dad's car, i was closing the door.
i was in my dad's car, i was getting near to my dance school, i was all excited, i was almost all excited, i had changed into my dance shoes and off i go for my dance class!
but..
i had forgot one of my flip flops when i was getting into my dad's car. i had conveniently left it at the car park when i was getting into the car.
-sheepish-
the single flip flop was still at the carpark waiting faithfully for its owner's retrieval.
Posted by: jayne | March 15, 2007 at 08:47 AM
Did someone mention not seeing the one episode of a show you really want to see, despite seeing all the reruns? For years I wanted to see the Monty Python Cheese Shop Sketch, and as Monty Python is on almost every night on UK Gold, I thought I had pretty good chance. Nope. Everytime I sat down to watch Month Python, no cheese shop sketch. Then one day, I flicked over to UK Gold expecting something else - and there it was, The Cheese Show Sketch just starting.
Other rules - no matter where you put your glasses down, they will inevitiably find their way to the next place you sit down. Glasses are suicidal.
The most interesting guy in the room is always gay. Or married to a complete bimbo. Or both.
If you have 30 seconds before you really REALLY have to leave for work, your computer will suddenly decide it needs to perform several complicated functions before it shuts down.
The day you have bad hair, a spot the size of Vesuvius on the end of your nose, are bloated to twice the size of New Zealand and are scowling fiercly as you realise you hate the entire world is the day you bump into the guy you erally fancy. The day you look gorgeous, a goddess brought down to Earth, is the day you see absolutely nobody you know.
Just as you sit down, nicely settled, heater/fan finally angled the right way and at the right temperature, fully laden tray of food on your lap, favourite TV programme about to start, glasses within reach is the exact same moment as you realise you really have to go to the toilet right now!
Posted by: Nona | March 14, 2007 at 06:21 AM
I can't take credit for this, but the real reason you lose socks is because of the existence of anti-socks.
The reason why you always lose socks when doing your laundry has long been an enigma to scientists. The widely accepted explanation requires the existence of anti-socks that lurk in washing machines. When a regular sock comes into contact with said anti-sock, the two eliminate each other, releasing a large amount of energy. Sometimes, the energy released creates another sock/anti-sock pair. The advantage to this theory is that it predicts the existence of the random socks you always find in your laundry that are never yours.
Posted by: rabow | March 12, 2007 at 02:02 PM
Dave's law of missing items: Blame it on my poltergeist.
I have one named Clyde, and he always hides things I have immediate need of. I usually ignore him, but if I really need to find something, like say I am on the bus downtown and am getting off at the next stop and I can't find where I put my glasses, I just say out loud "Clyde, put those glasses back!" People look at me like I'm crazy, but I find my glasses right away.
Posted by: ex CC boss | March 12, 2007 at 07:47 AM
Any electrical appliance placed on a horizontal surface for use or servicing will ultimately come to rest on its own power cord.
Posted by: Paul Steinway | March 12, 2007 at 06:40 AM
It rains over weekends while weekdays bask in sunshine. I'd always known that - and now National Geographic agrees. Saw on Wild Weather last week that human weekly work cycles have had their impact on rain patterns.
Posted by: anuja | March 11, 2007 at 11:38 PM
Yes, I have one.
Procrastination produces...aw, the hell with it. I need a nap.
Posted by: MikeBert in Phoenix | March 11, 2007 at 02:10 PM
While playing golf, your ball lands a few yards away from a tree. When taking the next shot, only way to avoid hitting the tree is to aim at the tree.
Posted by: pemma | March 11, 2007 at 01:39 PM
You rarely see pedestrians in a modern neighborhood. If there is one he will always cross your driveway just when you want to turn into it.
If you pull into a driveway that has a hose stretched across it your tires will always stop on the hose.
Posted by: Davey Gravy | March 11, 2007 at 12:10 AM
Odd Laws of Physics:
No corollaries, postulates, theories, or Second Laws of Etc.
The truth in movement of any object is random. We come up with ways of explaining, only what we "see" or observe. If it happens enough times, we think it's "law". Then one day, for reasons unknown, it just decides to either sit put, or as you mentioned, go off in a direction totally skewed.
Free will of non-thinking objects are just as true as free will of thinking objects. And I doubt it's even will....it's more like "whim".
Flip a coin 100 times. Does it wander to that 50/50 law....or does it, for reasons unknown either land perfectly on it's rim...or just fall into a storm gutter.
A better law concerning chance, is to just not risk that penny at all, and keep it in your pocket. Letting money decide on it's own where it chooses to fall, can't be smart.
Posted by: Madmarleyboro | March 10, 2007 at 07:14 PM
When you turn on one of those taps that control both temperature and water volume with a single tap depending on how far you crank it (mainly modernish shower taps), and move it halfway, it will always be a different temperature depending on whether or not you turned it from the 'hot side' or the 'cold side'.
Posted by: Cisco | March 10, 2007 at 08:07 AM
This is why I've chained my keys to my backpack.
Posted by: elmindreda | March 10, 2007 at 07:20 AM
I was walking home from work last week, and I found a targa computer bag lying on the ground, underneath the rapid transit system (ie train). I thought neat! There was no computer in it though. So I dropped it, and went on my my merry way. The next day, while attaching my overly large backup to my back, I thought, hey, I could use a smaller bag! Maybe that Targa bag is there! So I rushed to the bum camp near my, work, where I'd seen it, but alas, it was gone.
The next day, on the way to work, I came across a ticketmaster ticket stuck to the ground. It was wet, and damp, and as much as I tried, I couldn't detach it from the cement. At first I thought it was a prank, but, no one was looking. And on second glance I saw it was a ticket for Meatloaf... for two days earlier.
And the point of this? Things will always work against you. Life isn't like a box of chocolates. Unless that box of chocolates contains a whole bunch of orange flavoured or cherry flavoured chocolates, and only a few toffee and fudge ones.
Posted by: Bill | March 09, 2007 at 01:47 PM
All cables, wires, hoses, etc that CAN tangle WILL tangle.
Corollary: All wires, cables, hoses, etc that CANNOT POSSIBLY tangle - will anyway.
Posted by: Tony W | March 09, 2007 at 12:41 PM
The Law of Toddler Shoe Magnetism
On a bus or train, toddler shoes will be attracted to nearby commuters. The toddler will rotate himself to accommodate the law.
Posted by: Abiebaby | March 09, 2007 at 07:43 AM