3 ms·
>It seems pretty clear that the development of the bicycle would've been significantly hampered by the fact that balancing on two wheels was: > (a) unintuitive
by JackFr 7y ago
>It seems pretty clear that the development of the bicycle would've been significantly hampered by the fact that balancing on two wheels was:
> (a) unintuitive as an idea with no analogue in nature or previous innovations
> (b) had a marked learning curve
> (c) that learning curve was separate and independent for each design.
This! It's completely non-obvious that balancing will work and there is no analog in nature to copy.
- lovemenot 7y agoSkating was a thing long before cycling was. With enough forward momentum one can go quite far balanced on one ice-skate.
- double0jimb0 7y agoRotating wheels generate a self balancing moment that resists falling over... which has nothing to do with balancing on a thin blade.
- jessaustin 7y agoFor the purposes of this discussion, that's probably true. However, I wouldn't be surprised if some super-precise slow motion video of a skater gliding on one skate revealed small adjustments analogous to the steering motions of a cyclist.