Mythbusters - Anyone see something that will stop 6000 page threads?

[quote=“boardjnky4,post:429,topic:37377"”]

simply friction.

if wheel speed = conveyor belt speed, plane can never take off.

if u stand on a treadmill on a skateboard, you have to hold onto something in order to not get dragged backwards, and holding urself forward is the force of the jet engine. when u turn up the speed of the treadmill, it takes more force to hold urself forward, so think about that in reverse. if the plane pushes forward and instantly the treadmill pulls in the reverse direction with enough force to keep the wheel speed equal to its(the belt) speed, the plane aint goin nowhere. simple as that. The way the question is worded, the plane aint goin nowhere.

[/quote]

OK, I think I understand. I’m going to try to paraphrase that. Tell me if I’m correctly restating your thought.

“The wheels are not spinning freely. There is friction at the wheel bearings. So if the treadmill is spinning backwards really fast, the friction at the bearings will apply a force on the plane opposite the direction that the plane is trying to move. This will keep the plane from moving forward.”

Are we saying the same thing?