03 March 2009

blowing in the wind

"Aerodynamically the bumblebee shouldn't be able to fly,
but the bumblebee doesn't know that
so it goes on flying anyway."

Mary Kay Ash

by c at 3.3.09
labels: , , , ,

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Actually this is an urban myth. If you do a little research, you'll stumble on a quote in the 1930s where a physicist at a party with a reporter did a few back-of-the-napkin equations and couldn't figure out how bumblebees fly. The reporter make a full article about it... but the physicist figured it out the next day. Basically the double wings create little vortexes that increase lift.
The problem is the rather inspiring story had already been published and latched on to by the public, and the newspaper's retraction and correction was buried a few pages in and ignored. Now it's an often-repeated, if incorrect anecdote.

April 22, 2009 at 9:14 AM
c said...

thank you, anonymous. from here on i will consider this quote a work of fiction....nonetheless...it does conjure a sentiment that has the potential to inspire those of us who want to pursue avenues which others have deemed impossible. no harm in a gentle misconception from time to time...but thanks for straightening out the facts and providing the information.

April 22, 2009 at 11:10 AM

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