Thu October 1st 2009
16:00
HR C101
Seminar Playing with stones: skipping stones and splashes
Lydéric Bocquet

Details:

Why, whenever one finds a stone nearby a shore, do we feel an irrepressible need to throw it in water? I won’t answer this difficult question, and will rather discuss in this talk the various phenomena which may occur when one throws a stone on water. As we know from common experience, depending on the throw one may observe the stone skipping over the water, or making a splash.

I will first discuss the stone skipping phenomenon, and identify the physical conditions for bouncing as well the origin of the dissipation which fixes the number of skips. In a second part, I will focus on the 'splash' phenomenon occuring when the stone enters into the water. I will in particular discuss the conditions to make a big 'splash' versus a tiny 'plop'.


References :
C. Clanet, F. Hersen, L. Bocquet, Nature 427 29 (2004)
L. Roselini, F. Hersen, C. Clanet, L. Bocquet, J. Fluid. Mech. 543 137 (2005)
V. Duclaux et al., J. Fluid. Mech. 591 1 (2007)
C. Duez, C. Ybert, C. Clanet, L. Bocquet, Nature Physics 3 180 (2007).
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