Thursday, August 27, 2009

distraction


I suppose it says something about me (and, frankly, nothing good) that I really like the trippy sensations produced by staring for way too long at these animations. Maybe I picked the wrong week to stop sniffing glue.

Try it. You are getting sleepy. Very, very sleepy. Your eyelids are getting heavy. You are falling into a deep, deep sleep. When you wake up, you will leave a comment on this post saying something nice about Niobe.

And (kind of based on the animation below) does anyone remember that toy from the 1970s that consisted of four silver balls, tied to strings and attached to a frame, which you would pull back (the balls, not the frame) then release so they would hit one another like tiny pendulums (pendula?), while you watched them swing back and forth and back and forth? Like, what the heck was it called?




eta: Newton's Cradle is apparently the (curiously apt) name I was looking for. Thank you, so, so much Jill, Betty M and Angie. And, because I know that you all want to rock your very own Newton's Cradle, while learning all about the conservation of momentum, here's a link to the interactive online version.

My only suggestion is not to create one with too many balls because, just like the real Newton's Cradle, you'll spend more time untangling than playing.


(both animations are public domain images from wikipedia commons)

21 comments:

Anonymous said...

You are an awesome, inspirational photographer and I covet your skills.

thordora said...

You are so totally my favorite person, you know that right? I so have to find you a perpetual motion machine...

jill said...

The thing with the four silver balls is called a "Newton's Cradle". There is a virtual one available here, http://abowman.com/google-modules/ , that is pretty darn cool.

Have you seen the trippy image of a ballerina spinning around? To some she seems to be spinning one direction and to other's, the other direction. It's facinating - I'll have to post it on my blog.

Betty M said...

Newton's cradle ( or balls).
Niobe is a wise woman.

Betty M said...

It gas a wiki page too

still life angie said...

I had the Newton's cradle too. Damn. Now I have to wait another ten years to pull out that useless knowledge.

Niobe, you have exquisite taste, an incredible eye for photography, an amazing memory. You are an excellent writer, and your sharp wit, dry and dark humor and turns of phrase frequently makes liquids come out of my nose. Pellegrino and espresso hurts like a mofo, so I only drink still water when I read you now.

Anonymous said...

I think you're pretty neat.

Amelie said...

those eyes make me sick, not sleepy... but you do find amazing things every time again.

painted maypole said...

do you have a lot of free time at work?

;)

Kristin said...

Thinking of you and hoping you don't go too crazy waiting.

areyoukiddingme said...

You're fantastic...Oh, wait, what was I doing? I just lost a big block of time.

Bluebird said...

Hummmm. . . getting sleepy, not trippy. . .

Boo.

Oh, and I think you're pretty cool :)

RP said...

Funny you should mention Newton's Cradle. We just stumbled upon one in an eclectic little toy store on the Vineyard last week. Mesmerizing indeed. My daughter was fascinated with it.

The orby eyes thing makes me think of an evil owl attempting mind control.

diana said...

Even though I'm not looking at neither of these tricks, I find Niobe wise, smart, a walking encyclopedia, intriguing, and, more than anything, how can she have dreams and wishes without longing to have them materialised? Or it's only my impresion...

Furrow said...

I want tos poste something nice abut my eyes aar still splotceyd from that stguuff. You'res wsewell.

The Nanny said...

I think you are the bomb diggity. And that's pretty high praise, miss.

Lindsay said...

Niobe is intriguing and often makes me crack a smile, when her dark wit takes a downward (often very witty) turn.
Niobe can find the coolest mind games and trippy images hidden in all corners of the web.
Niobe is beautiful.


...Lindsay is wiping the shit off of her nose ;)

Caro said...

Cool trippy thing.

Just catching up after my trip and came to say congrats about the ultrasound and wow.

Monica H said...

Ooh, not a distraction for me. That first one just reminds me of my enlarged ovaries.

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Unknown said...

Remember when people always had a Newton's Cradle on their desk? I love them. Maybe I should get one for work, and drive my office mate crazy with that klink, klink, klink ...

Thinking of you, waiting for the news.