Center of Gravity of a Baseball Bat
Brief Description
The baseball bat is used to demonstrate how to find the center of mass of an irregular rod. If you hold up the bat with one finger at each end and slowly bring your fingers together, they will meet each other at the center of mass. This is because the amount of force on one finger depends on the placement of the center of mass relative to it. That is, if one finger is closer to the center of mass than the other, then the contact force between it and the baseball bat is stronger than with the other finger. This leads to more friction on the finger that’s closer to the center of mass, and will thus move less than the other finger as you bring them together.
Materials
Wooden Baseball Bat
Performing the Demo
To perform this demo, simply balance the baseball bat on two fingers and bring them together towards the middle slowly. Where they meet will be the center of mass.
Other Notes
This demonstration can be done with any irregular rod (see 1J10.20).