Lord of the Rings, rated PGP

[Rumil]

If you read the Silmarillion, you'll find out that Middle Earth's sun and moon were derived from fruit, possibly a minor physical flaw?

PS. Rentaghost ! There must be someone here nearly as old as me!

[Lalwendë]

Nah, just a kid who just had a physics project in which I used these examples.

You know, you youngsters just put me to shame! You know so much stuff! I couldn't cope with too much more than all those Hobbits dancing around in my head - where do you find the time? *impressed*

PS. Rentaghost ! There must be someone here nearly as old as me!

'Twas my favourite show - Mrs Popov, MacWitch etc., which one always failed to do the materialising properly though?

I was just thinking about Shelob and Ungoliant. I heard once that spiders can only get to a certain size (about as big as a small plate), biologically speaking, and then the genetic composition of their bodies would make them unable to get any bigger, or their skeletons would simply collapse under the weight.

[The Saucepan Man]

Originally Posted by Lalwendë

'Twas my favourite show - Mrs Popov, MacWitch etc., which one always failed to do the materialising properly though?

Wasn't that Timothy Claypole? Or perhaps Mr Davenport? I must watch my Rentaghost video again sometime. Ah, the nostalgia of tea-time children's television ...

Sorry. Blatantly off-topic for a moment there.

... or their skeletons would simply collapse under the weight.

Don't you mean that they would be crushed under the weight of their exoskeletons?

Isn't there some law of physics to the effect that any creature above a certain weight would be too heavy to fly. That would put paid to Dragons, Fell Beasts, Giant Eagles and (*ahem*) winged Balrogs. I realise that there were some pretty huge Pterosaurs around in prehistoric times, but I believe that they had hollow bones and were incredibly fragile. I can't imagine Dragons and Balrogs having hollow bones, and Dragons' scales must have been pretty hefty to afford such protection. And the Fell Beasts had to carry Ringwraiths (although, as they were dead, perhaps there weight was negligible).

In any event, I believe that Thorondor was supposed to be the size of a Lancaster Bomber. I can't see a creature that size flying without some kind of artificial thrust. He might be able to take off from the mountains, but if he ever made landfall, he could be in trouble ...

Then again, I am far from being a physicist. My worst subject at school by some margin ...

[Encaitare]

Isn't there some law of physics to the effect that any creature above a certain weight would be too heavy to fly.

There is, but there are exceptions. According to the laws of physics, bumblebees and helicopters should not be able to fly.

Don't ask me to prove that one -- it's a bit of random trivia I know, but I chose not to take physics, so I don't know the math or anything.

[Lhunardawen]

It's my holiday break, and I'm really glad since for a period of three weeks I can stop thinking about school. What's more, I have more time for the Downs! Now I log on and what I see is a discussion of my favorite subject: Physics.

Okay, I'll stop the ranting.

Originally Posted by Nimrodel_9

How about when Legolas throws Aragorn and Gimli a rope? Aragorn wraps an arm around the dwarf, grasps the rope with one hand, and is hauled up. How is that possible? I guess Arry is very VERY strong.

Isn't a Dwarf and an Elf too heavy for a rope as thin as the one we saw in the movie? Shouldn't their mass, and the fact that they were hanging on in midair, have been enough for the rope to snap, putting an end to their Orc-killing game?

Originally Posted by Lalwendë

I was just thinking about Shelob and Ungoliant. I heard once that spiders can only get to a certain size (about as big as a small plate), biologically speaking, and then the genetic composition of their bodies would make them unable to get any bigger, or their skeletons would simply collapse under the weight.

Ah, but Ungoliant and her descendants are mutants, their genetic composition altered in such a way that they can grow to such extreme sizes. They were probably given a few hundred additional nitrogen-base pairs for their DNA.

Another thing, remember the scene in TTT where Saruman and Gandalf were on top of Orthanc, and Saruman had Gandalf standing diagonally at the very edge of the floor (or ceiling, actually)? I think Gandalf should have fallen already due to the pull of gravity, unless there is a stronger horizontal force that keeps his feet firmly planted on the floor. Maybe his shoes are made of metal and Orthanc is a gigantic electromagnet...

I'll stop now, before I go crazy.

[Elianna]

Originally Posted by Lhunardawen

Another thing, remember the scene in TTT where Saruman and Gandalf were on top of Orthanc, and Saruman had Gandalf standing diagonally at the very edge of the floor (or ceiling, actually)? I think Gandalf should have fallen already due to the pull of gravity, unless there is a stronger horizontal force that keeps his feet firmly planted on the floor. Maybe his shoes are made of metal and Orthanc is a gigantic electromagnet...

Hmm, I thought that Saruman was holding him up with his levatation magic.

[Boromir88]

When FOTR first came out, I wondered how this part was possible...

When Merry and Pippin launch off Gandalf's fireworks, and they are not even a foot away, yet they just get a little singed. I work for a fireworks company, and you wouldn't believe some of the stories. Of employees trying to steel fireworks, and losing their hands blowing them up, and many other parts I'm afraid .

[Lalwendë]

I had to, sorry, it's off topic and all...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ilove/tv/rentaghost/intro.shtml

In any event, I believe that Thorondor was supposed to be the size of a Lancaster Bomber. I can't see a creature that size flying without some kind of artificial thrust. He might be able to take off from the mountains, but if he ever made landfall, he could be in trouble ...

Makes you wonder why Saruman cut those trees down. Perhaps he was building a runway for some nefarious purpose...

[Lhunardawen]

Originally Posted by Lalwendë

Makes you wonder why Saruman cut those trees down. Perhaps he was building a runway for some nefarious purpose...

Or he needed talking lumber for some way-out machinery of evil...