The Physics of Swimming



By: Emily
Physics 104 Summer 2009


For my Summer Web Project I decided to explore and study the physics of swimming.
Most people consider swimming a fun or enjoyable task,
but they rarely think about the physics involved in this activity.
This site will explore that concept and challenge you to think about swimming
in a completely new and exciting way!


History of Swimming
Swimming is a fun activity whether you
are at the beach in a relaxing pool or competing
in an Olympic race for the gold medal.
It is considered an Olympic sport and has been
around since the dawn of time.
In earlier times swimming was a form of recreation or
even a means to survive however,
today swimming is directed towards the more
competitive aspect of the sport.
There are many different styles of swimming ranging
from the breaststroke to the backstroke.
Whether you realize this or not, there are actually many
Physics principles embedded in the art of swimming.
Continue exploring this site to learn more about swimming
and the physics involved in the sport!


Newton's Laws of Motion



Newton's Laws of Motion are three physical laws
that directly relate the forces acting on
a body to the motion of the body.
Newton used them to explain and investigate
the motion of many physical objects and systems.
Even though these laws were developed in the 1600's,
they can still be used today to explain most types
of movement in water and on land.


Newton's First Law of Motion

An object in motion stays in motion until acted upon by an outside force.
An object at rest stays at rest until acted upon by an outside force.

Newton's first law explains why it takes
additional force to start or stop moving through
two different forces.
These two forces are static force and dynamic force.
Static force is when your body is at rest it must be overcome
by a certain force before fluid movement can begin.
This is the case when you push off
the bottom of the pool or side of the wall.
The resistance you feel when movement starts
it the static force that you overcome.


Newton's Second Law of Motion

The change of motion depends on the magnitude
of the force and the mass of the object.

Newton's Second Law of motion explains
why some people can swim at faster speeds than others.
For example, if two swimmers have an equal mass
and push off the side of the poll
without taking any additional strokes,
the person who used the greatest force
when pushing off the wall will travel a farther distance.
The acceleration in this situation was greater
 for the person who produced the greater force
because the masses were the same.
If you take these same two people
and have them race to the other side of the pool
the person who wins the race would have to exert
a greater force throughout
the entire race in order to stay in the lead.
A greater force produced by a person
with a smaller mass will have the largest acceleration.

Components of Newton's Second Law

1. If force is increased then acceleration increases when mass is constant.
2. If mass is increased then force increases when acceleration is constant.
3. If mass is increased then acceleration decreases when force is constant.
All three of these parts are true for the opposite also.


Newton's Third Law of Motion

For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

Through this law Newton is describing exactly how movement occurs.
For example, when you pull the water down your side,
using the breast stroke swimming technique,
the water moves down toward your feet
while in turn you are propelled forward.
The action in this case would be you moving
your arm in the water and the equal reaction
is the water pushing back on you.
The opposition in this case, and many others,
is the reason that forward movement occurs.

Now that you know a little more about the physics
of swimming lets take a look at some of the
most recent applications of this increasingly popular sport.




 


Swimming and the Olympics



The Olympic Games are an international event
of summer and winter sports,
in which thousands of athletes compete in a wide variety of events.
The Games are currently held every two years,
with Summer and Winter Olympic Games alternating.
Swimming has been a part of the Olympics
since it first began many years ago and
the United States Swim Team has been participating
in the games for many years. Due to the 2008 Olympic Games,
which were hosted in Beijing, China,
swimming has gained much attention.
This increase in attention was sparked mainly
by recent swimmer Michael Phelps.
This year in the Beijing Olympics Phelps
amazed millions of viewers as he won eight gold medals,
setting the record for the most ever won at a single Olympics.



 

In addition to Phelps breaking records at the 2008 Beijing Olympics,
there were 21 events that had new world records in swimming. 
This is not only a lot of records, but it is more than half of the events
for which there are world records in a 50 meter pool. 
You may be wondering why this many records were
broken in this particular Olympics. 
Were the swimmers that much better,
the swimsuits that more advanced,
or was it something else? 
Surprisingly enough, this goal-breaking phenomenon is because
of the physics used when designing
the Beijing National Aquatic Center Water Cube,
which was built specially for the 2008 Olympics. 
This pool is one of the world’s fastest and is three meters deep,
the deepest allowable, and ten lanes wide, even though Olympic
events are only run with eight swimmers per heat. 
What is the reason for this increase in depth and width? 
According to physics, if you make the water deeper the
waves appear smaller and cause fewer disturbances in the water. 
If you make the walls farther away the energy has
a larger volume of water to disperse over. 
The water cube takes advantage of these two factors
because it is 25% wider and 50% deeper than normal
Olympic-sized swimming pools. 
This wider and deeper design of the pool means not only
is there less water disturbance from swimmers swimming in it,
but the water settles down faster,
so that by the time the swimmers come back for
their second lap the water is already calm from the first lap. 
Although we all may think that Michael Phelps
and the rest of the swimmers who broke records
in the 2008 Beijing Olympics have superhuman qualities,
some of their success can be attributed
to physics and the design of the pool.


Swimming and Fitness
Swimming is not only a sport or recreational activity;
it is also a source of excellent exercise.
Many fitness coaches say that swimming is a
good fitness choice for just about everyone,
especially those who have physical limitations
or who find other forms of exercise painful.



Swimming incorporates all of the major muscle groups,
including the shoulders, back, abdominals,
legs, hips, and glutes.
Using all of these muscle groups in water is
very beneficial to gain strength since water affords
12 times resistance as air in every direction.
Swimming incorporates a cardiovascular
workout as well as strength training all in
one to ensure the maximum level of benefit for the body.
Many swimmers undergo vigorous workouts to
improve their strength and speed for competition
but you can begin your own simple swimming
workout as long as you have access to a pool,
a swimsuit, goggles, flippers, and a kick board.
Swimmers like Brendan Hansen,
the captain of the 2008 Beijing Olympic U.S. Swim Team
and Director of Training and Performance for Pure Sport,
design workouts for others to encourage
swimming and exercising.
Click here to see the workout designed by Hansen.


Now that you have explored the physics of swimming,
learned more about the sport and how it can keep you healthy,
hopefully you are more interested in physics as well as swimming!
Emily


**A special note about this site.
I've added this site on my domain to honor a lovely young lady
that made this page for a school project.
Emily you sure did a wonderful job.  


This Site was added on 17 Jun 2009


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