6 ms·
Researchers improve efficiency of human walking
- jules 12y agoThough what we really need is a device to decrease the efficiency of human walking.
- glial 12y agoBeer.
- glaucoma 12y agoI agreed with you intelligent dude
- chrisBob 12y agoThat is already a mature technology. I prefer to use a heavy pack but cell phones are also a popular technique.
- anon4 12y agoThere's an even simpler device -- the string. Simply tie your ankles together and presto.
- jtheory 12y agoIt depends on your goals, of course. For lots of adults these days, walking is the only exercise they get. If they're lucky it's a brisk walk. Making that little bit of exercise consume less energy isn't really a goal in those cases. Of course, there are still applications for this. They just seem unlike to be found among the sedentary masses.
- deleted 12y ago[deleted]
- kzhahou 12y agoDoes an unpowered clutch engage a spring in parallel with the Achilles tendon when the foot is on the ground, offloading the calf muscles and making walking easier?
- diminoten 12y agoThat's... exactly what the caption under the first image says.
- JoeAltmaier 12y agoHe's mocking the article, which repeats that caption on every picture.
- _0ffh 12y agoThe problem is, the linked "article" is not the article. This is the article: https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?org=NSF&cntn_id=134667&preview=false https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?org=NSF&cntn_id=13466...
- imh 12y agoYes, when walking with a passive-elastic ankle exoskeleton.
- trose 12y agoI guess you could say he's got a _spring_ in his step...
- kbar13 12y agointeresting. I didn't know that an unpowered clutch engages a spring in parallel with the Achilles tendon when the foot is on the ground, offloading the calf muscles and making walking easier.
- socialist_coder 12y agoI thought it was common knowlege? I know I've heard it enough times.
- deegles 12y agoI wonder if they also increase the efficiency of running. Maybe the first marathon runner to break the 2-hour barrier will be wearing them. If the efficiency increase is significant, I could see it becoming common to wear for commuting to work. You could run longer distances with less wear on your body.
- snarkyturtle 12y agoI feel like the running community would shun them, since it's technically an method of assistance. Besides, I bet for ultra-elite marathon runners, the bulk of the shoe would outweigh the benefits it provides. You're talking about people who wear super-light minimalist shoes because it gives them an advantage.
- robotresearcher 12y agoThe claimed walking advantage is 7% even with the extra weight, which is a hell of a lot. They make no claim for running.
- Potando 12y agoThis is a paradox of runners and cyclists too. They use high-tech gear to make running easier - easier than a naked human can do it - but they refuse powered assistance. I don't understand why they make such a clear distinction between using gadgets to save power and using gadgets to provide more power. If it's about natural un-assisted ability, they shouldn't wear shoes either.
- Someone 12y agoDepends on a lot of factors, including whether the public would like it (would they applaud the higher speeds or find it cheating?) There already is a lot of assistance in athletics, not even limited to footwear. For example, running tracks have 9 lanes nowadays, even though only 8 people start in sprinting events. Reason? The innermost lane is softer, for middle and long distance runners; the other 8 are harder for the shorter distances. On the other hand, it always surprises me that, in athletics, competitors wear numbers tied to their shirts with safety pins. Especially in the 100m and 200m, the one on the back of the runner must cause significant drag.
- rjurney 12y agoI could imagine military applications for this... especially if a soldier is armored, carrying a pack, etc.
- DubiousPusher 12y agohttps://www.cmu.edu/me/news/archive/2015/collins-clutch.html https://www.cmu.edu/me/news/archive/2015/collins-clutch.html A more conventional article about the device and related paper.
- epicureanideal 12y agoI hope we'll soon be able to buy one of these. I'd get one.
- tacon 12y agoThis is amazing, though I admit I had to click through just to see if it was an April Fools headline leftover.
- amelius 12y ago"Download the high resolution of the image" Unfortunately, the "high" resolution only holds for the x and y dimensions, not the t dimension.
- ylem 12y agoHere's a link to the nature article: http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nature14288.html#figures http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/natu...
- joe_the_user 12y agoI've studied a number of martial arts and body work disciplines. One thing we did was teach people is to walk more efficiently - it's not hard given that the average person just follows the example of their peers and then allows habitual muscle tension to gradually interfere. The thing about this device is I suspect that even if did work, it would just allow people to just further lower their level of coordination and ultimately have rather poor health results.
- panorama 12y agoWhat is the correct method of walking?
- joe_the_user 12y agoWell, Essentially "correct," or at least elegant, walking involves balance and a lack of tension. Naturally learning this requires a lot of direct experience since walking is primarily a reflex activity. However, walking is at the same a skill which can be learned and modified if someone looks into hands-on methods. However, you can get some idea reading about The Alexander Technique, The Feldenkrais Method, Tai Chi and so forth. [1] http://www.alexandertechnique.com/at.htm http://www.alexandertechnique.com/at.htm [2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feldenkrais_Method http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feldenkrais_Method [3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tai_chi http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tai_chi
- bougiefever 12y agoMaybe these can just do my exercising for me so I can watch more Netflix
- swehner 12y agoApril fool's leftover?