Blue. 100% (Assuming it's just being pulled from the ends). It's got nothing to do with gravity in this case, though; it's just simply like pulling a string tight around a ball. Exactly the same.

If this is truely a big debate between people somewhere, this is the stupidest debate I have seen yet on internet forums.

Quote from mrodgers :

If this is truely a big debate between people somewhere, this is the stupidest debate I have seen yet on internet forums.

There are far more worthless things to argue about than physics theory. At least this has some academic value.

Quote from MAGGOT :

Blue. 100% (Assuming it's just being pulled from the ends). It's got nothing to do with gravity in this case, though; it's just simply like pulling a string tight around a ball. Exactly the same.

But if you don't tighten the string it will still touch earth all way and not hang like the red string in the picture.

Blue, obviously. What would make red work?

red is awesome

LOL, I don't get how this is a question.

Who cares how tight it is, it could be loosey goosey and obviously it will adhere to the planet. And yes it has everything to do with gravity! :doh:

Its blue. I voted red just for "lulz".

Just take a football, get some string, and put it around the ball. It will touch it all the way. It wont magically rise up....

Quote :

But will it blend?

Muahaha

I knew someone will post this. You just know on a thread like this, someone will do it

nah maggot is right it has absolutely nothing to do with gravity and everything to do with simple geometry
to pull something tight _around_ something you need at least 3 fixed points... in this case the 3rd is somewhere in antarctica

Quote from Shotglass :

nah maggot is right it has absolutely nothing to do with gravity and everything to do with simple geometry
to pull something tight _around_ something you need at least 3 fixed points... in this case the 3rd is somewhere in antarctica

What? It has nothing to do with pulling it. No matter how tight it is, the end result will be the same.

Quote from Shotglass :

nah maggot is right it has absolutely nothing to do with gravity and everything to do with simple geometry
to pull something tight _around_ something you need at least 3 fixed points... in this case the 3rd is somewhere in antarctica

But as BBT agrees, pulling it tight doesn't matter, it will still touch the surface all the way around because gravity.

edit. ^ Heh, good timing.

it MIGHT float IF and only IF it was stiff. As in a metal ring. THEN gravity would work equally from all sides and cancel out. The same principle is applied in bridge building, but only to the point of transfering the weight of the bridge down to the pillers and the top stone.
BUT.. since gravity isnt the same everywhere on the earth... some odd stuff would happen.

You mean it would touch the ground, but with a slightly different force in different places?

I really had to think hard to understand how the red could even make sense to anyone, but I guess it's the observation that two people pulling the string tight in opposite directions would cause it to be suspended in the air. Increase the distance until their backs hit each other, and you've got yourself some levitatin' string.

Complete nonsense of course, but you can see how they got there.

Quote from Stigpt :

it MIGHT float IF and only IF it was stiff. As in a metal ring. THEN gravity would work equally from all sides and cancel out.

Wouldn't be much of a string though. Hard to tie your shoes with anyway.

This thread has single handedly destroyed any hope I had left for humanity. We might as well collectively forget how to breathe and get this over with.

I dont even see any picture od diagram in the 1st post.

Quote from wien :

I really had to think hard to understand how the red could even make sense to anyone, but I guess it's the observation that two people pulling the string tight in opposite directions would cause it to be suspended in the air. Increase the distance until their backs hit each other, and you've got yourself some levitatin' string.

My turn to be dense, and possibly further Android's plight... my question is:

WHAT?

My congratulations for inventing levitating string, this is truly a momentous day for humanity

Quote from Ball Bearing Turbo :

My turn to be dense, and possibly further Android's plight... my question is:

WHAT?

It doesn't make sense at all, that was my point. That's just the only thought process I could imagine that would lead people to think the red would work. You have to basically imagine the earth as "flat" and that the string pulled taut between the two people on this earth would be suspended above the ground. Then wrap the entire system around a sphere (since we all know the earth is a sphere) and you're there.

This of course ignores gravity pulling the entire string down towards the centre of the earth and that the pulling force would cause the string to be wrapped taut around the earth even if you ignored gravity for whatever reason.

I get what you're saying now.

In that case, if you could pull hard enough it would be suspended at steadily decreasing height until the horizon for each person, then wrap around touching the ground, then slowly rise from the horizon to the other person.

edit: which is what the blue line actually shows, I guess I didn't look too hard the first time

edit2: sorry Shot & Maggot. At least I didn't refer to the string sagging under it's own weight

Quote from Ball Bearing Turbo :

In that case, if you could pull hard enough it would be suspended at steadily decreasing height until the horizon for each person, then wrap around touching the ground, then slowly rise from the horizon to the other person.

Obviously, which is the piece of insight these people would be missing. I'm just trying to create a tiny bit of internal logic in the opinions of what is apparently half (HALF!!!1!) of mcintyrej's college mates, lest I join Android in his depression.

First thought when I saw this thread:

Trying to invent your own "string theory"? :icon23:

Second: Lerts must have the answer.

Blue line, duuhhhh.

It's the same reason why the equater goes around the earth, and not tangentially off into space.

but. yeah.... This is a simply one. Suppose two people hold a rope and stretch it until it has zero sag. The rope seeks to find the shortest distance between the peeps. That distance is a straight line. Now, the fellas start to back away from each other until until they pass beneath the horizon. At that point, the rope is touching the earth at a spot equidistant from our two friends. As these guys continue to back away from eachother, the rope continues to touch the earth at more and more points.

Then again... Once they disappear over the horizon, won't the rope begin to slip off to the side unless a third friend is holding it at the midpoint? Remember, the tension in the rope is attempting to relieve itself by finding the shortest distance between the two rope jockeys?

And a final question... Once the rope circles the earth, can you jump the rope? Or is the rope jumping you? This part has me LOLing at myself. Once you get the rope turning, would it remain in motion forever in orbit?

Quote from PAracer :

Then again... Once they disappear over the horizon, won't the rope begin to slip off to the side unless a third friend is holding it at the midpoint?

Not until the string is wrapping more than 180 degrees of the earth circumference, and not unless you make the earth out of solid teflon.

Could it not be the red though? If you did it on a smaller scale, like one guy at one end of the field and another guy at the other end of a field, each pulling each end of the string tight, it won't touch the floor. Then if they walked (if it was humanly possibly) around the world in opposite directions and met up on the other side while keeping the string tight, why would it be touching the floor? Would the curvature of the Earth make the string drag along the floor? It's a good question. I thought it was obviously blue at first but after thinking about it some more, I am not so sure.