A1_4 Biting the Bullet

Authors

  • Christopher Mander University of Leicester
  • Alistair Goodwin University of Leicester
  • Laura Horton University of Leicester
  • Luca James University of Leicester
  • Michael McKee University of Leicester

Abstract

Catching a bullet between the teeth has been a magic trick from as early as 1586. Here we investigate if, assuming they were able to catch a bullet, human teeth can withstand the shear stress applied by the decelerating bullet. We find that the shear stress of catching a bullet along the molar teeth, 2.99 * 10^8 Pa, is 6.48 times greater than the maximum shear strength of human teeth. Additionally, we find that the number of pairs of molars needed to stop a bullet without reaching the maximum shear stress of human teeth is 20.

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Published

11/28/2019

How to Cite

Mander, C., Goodwin, A., Horton, L., James, L., & McKee, M. (2019). A1_4 Biting the Bullet. Physics Special Topics, 18(1). Retrieved from https://journals.le.ac.uk/index.php/pst/article/view/3341

Issue

Vol. 18 No. 1 (2019): Physics Special Topics

Section

Articles