Flight in Birds and Aeroplanes
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John Maynard Smith, one of our most eminent evolutionary biologists and scientific communicators originally trained as an engineer and spent the war years designing aircraft. He describes the way that flight developed in the animal kingdom. The fossil record indicates that the long tails which stabilised the flight of the first birds evolved into shorter, less stable, structures which allowed greater agility.The implications of these ideas for increased manoeuvrability in modern computer-controlled aircraft is explored with the aid of simple model demonstrations and discussion.
 Write a Review of Flight in Birds and Aeroplanes
Flight in Birds and Aeroplanes, February 17, 2006
Reviewer: girijad83
from India
In this podcast, John Maynard is introduced by John Murrel. It is about the history of how modern airplanes developed. John Maynard was the first aeronautical engineer, and later got trained as a zoologist.
He demonstrates and explains the study of the development of the flight of birds and their impact on airplane design. He explains this with the accurate precision of an original thinker, and demonstrates the necessary structural design of airplanes with self-designed physical miniature models that can actually fly! He shows how stability and agility are the two important and conflicting aspects of airplane design.
This is an excellent source of information for all airplane enthusiasts as it brings into perspective the biological origins and evolutionary design of airplanes.
The video is excellent and the narration is clear.
- Published:
2002
- LearnOutLoud.com Product ID:
F015222
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