Physicists from the Royal Institute of Great Britain have clearly demonstrated how to flip a by tossing it in the air above the skillet.
The secret to this skill, especially relevant during the week of , lies in the .
In a video, the researcher noted: “The secret to flawlessly flipping a pancake is rooted in physics. Simply put, when the pancake is at rest, only two forces act on it – gravity and an equal force from the skillet.”
However, just tossing the pancake into the air isn’t enough to make it flip. “You need a pivot point. For the pancake to turn over, it must rotate. This happens due to the torque created when the skillet slightly shifts the pancake’s center of mass, giving it angular acceleration,” the scientist explained. To change the pancake’s motion, a net force must act on it.
This reflects Newton’s first law of motion, which states that an object at rest remains at rest, and an object in motion continues in motion.
“By tossing the skillet upward, we push the pancake with a net force and acceleration directed upward. This illustrates Newton’s second law,” the video explains. The net force directed upward causes an upward acceleration.
Once the pancake leaves the skillet, it becomes a projectile, acted upon only by the force of gravity.
Therefore, to flip a pancake correctly, you need to combine the vertical movement of the skillet with a slight circular motion that shifts the center of mass.
As the video instructor pointed out, the rotation continues even after the pancake detaches from the skillet. The time it spends in the air must be sufficient to complete half a turn (or a full turn) and land flat.
Insights and Comments
Although a rather thick pancake was used in the demonstration, the scientists noted that the laws of physics apply to thin pancakes as well.
The Daily Mail conducted a poll asking readers to report whether they mastered (or failed to master) this skill after watching the video. Only a third of respondents answered positively.
Commenters on social media pointed out that the pancake in the video flipped “too much” and landed on the same side it started on. The video creators responded: “This is one of those situations where theory scores a 10 out of 10, but practice is more like a 5 out of 10. At least it didn’t end in disaster.”
Perhaps the key to mastering the art of flipping a pancake on a is persistent practice. After all, there’s still time to perfect it by the end of the week.
Photo: pixabay.com
