The Shocking Truth about E.T's Fly High

Authors

  • Hannah Mahoney McMaster University

Keywords:

Film, Physics, Mechanics, Electromagnetism, Elliot, E.T. the extraterrestrial

Abstract

This paper aims to calculate the forces required by E.T. to complete the ‘fly high’ scene in the movie ‘E.T. the Extra-terrestrial’. It provides an assumption for the weight of Elliot, the bike, and E.T. The force required for E.T. to stop the initial fall of the bike was determined to be 573.6 N using kinematic equations. Assuming E.T. is able to create a dielectric separation between himself and the ground, it was determined using Coulomb’s Law that E.T. would need to elicit a positive charge of 0.004 C to create an electrostatic repulsion force strong enough to offset gravity. These results were then discussed.

References

Mathison, M. (1982) E.T. the Extra-terrestrial. [Film] Directed by Steven Spielberg. USA: Universal Pictures. First released June 11, 1982.

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Ray, S. & Robinson, A. (1989). The chess players. London: Faber & Faber, p.145.

Kuczmarski, R. (2002). 2000 CDC growth charts for the United States. Hyattsville, Md.: Dept. of Health

Fanpop, I. (2019). E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial Fan Club | Fansite with photos, videos, and more. Fanpop.com. Available at: http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/et-the-extra-terrestrial [Accessed 26th February 2019].

Groves, J. (2010). Bicycle weight and commuting time: randomised trial. BMJ, 341(dec09 2), pp.c6801-c6801.

Topham-Wood, H. (2019). Is an Average of 15 Miles Per Hour on a Bike Good for a Beginner? | Livestrong.com. [online] LIVESTRONG.COM. Available at: https://www.livestrong.com/article/486666-is-an-average-of-15-miles-per-hour-on-a-bike-good-for-a-beginner/ [Accessed 9th March 2019].

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Published

11.03.2019

How to Cite

Mahoney, H. (2019). The Shocking Truth about E.T’s Fly High. Journal of Interdisciplinary Science Topics, 8. Retrieved from https://journals.le.ac.uk/index.php/jist/article/view/3060

Issue

Vol. 8 (2019)

Section

Articles

License

This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.  All content is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence (CC-BY 4.0).