Chapter 2, Problem 42CP

Two thin rods are fastened to the inside of a circular ring as shown in Figure P2.42. One rod of length D is vertical, and the other of length L makes an angle θ with the horizontal. The two rods and the ring lie in a vertical plane. Two small beads are free to slide without friction along the rods. (a) If the two beads are released from rest simultaneously from the positions shown, use your intuition and guess which bead reaches the bottom first. (b) Find an expression for the time interval required for the red head to fall from point Ⓐ to point Ⓒ in terms of g and D. (c) Find an expression for the time interval required for the blue bead to slide from point Ⓑ to point Ⓒ in terms of g, L, and θ. (d) Show that the two time intervals found in parts (b) and (c) are equal. Hint: What is the angle between the chords of the circle Ⓐ Ⓑ and Ⓑ Ⓒ? (e) Do these results surprise you? Was your intuitive guess in part (a) correct? This problem was inspired by an article by Thomas B. Greenslade, Jr., “Galileo’s Paradox,” Phys. Teach. 46, 294 (May 2008).

Figure P2.42