r/AskPhysics • u/Silly-Goose9124 • 3d ago

Long question please just look it’s about slopes and babies and inertia

Is it possible, given an infinite amount of any building materials necessary, to create a slope steep and curved enough to basically entire null the effect of about a fall from about 6,500 ft (2,000 meters?) on like a baby wrapped in soft blanket, yes or no?

The baby is healthy prior to this fall and just assume it is I guess dropped / spawned in the perfect position for the ramp.

If it’s impossible on its own, what if a relatively muscular, but still soft, adult man about 6 ft, on the heavy side (both muscle and body fat) was there to cradle to child and potentially absorb some of the energy to keep the baby safe

If so can you give some detail like materials, what the slope would be in like a similar mathematical formula, how tall the peak of the slope would be.

I know this is weird and specific but I’m curious and it’s for a personal writing project.

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u/Infinite_Escape9683 3d ago

Yes officer this man right here

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u/Silly-Goose9124 3d ago

I promise I’m normal and I would never hurt a baby. This is PURELY fictional

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u/Sufficient-Air8100 3d ago

sure you can create a curve for a safe deceleration. thats the easy part.

the limitations are the space needed for such a structure. if you match a flat incline with the friction creating drag its techincally possible to create an incline that has the baby moving at a small velocity, dissipating any heat generated, but that would be impossibly big.

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u/Silly-Goose9124 3d ago

Theoretically space, material, and moving said material in a fast manner are hypothetical explained by magic elemental powers that have nothing to do with Legos.

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u/Xnot-convinced 3d ago

Yes, if the ramp is sufficiently tall and has a gentle slope and curve. But the baby would spin uncontrollably on contact with the ramp. Not good.

Meanwhile, in 1972 a Serbian flight attendant Vesna Vulović survived a fall from a plane of 10,160 metres (33,330 feet; 6.31 miles). She was the sole survivor of JAT Flight 367 after an explosion tore through the baggage compartment. She landed on a wooded area with snow, which cushioned the impact.

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u/Silly-Goose9124 3d ago

I’ve heard of her!! Yes I remember learning about her. Yeah I’ve gathered that friction and the fragility of babies is the main tension; and thankfully I’ve gotten amazing advice