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From: swift@reed.UUCP (Theodore Swift)
Newsgroups: net.space
Subject: Re: Getting UNSTUCK in the middle of space
Message-ID: <1540@reed.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 16-May-85 22:33:05 EDT
Article-I.D.: reed.1540
Posted: Thu May 16 22:33:05 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 19-May-85 06:33:32 EDT
References: <1710@mordor.UUCP>
Reply-To: swift@reed.UUCP (ted swift)
Organization: Reed College, Portland, Oregon
Lines: 21
Summary: buoyancy in air for a human?

Keywords:buoyancy, flatulance 

>	I can't understand why swimming motions wouldn't work (and didn't,
>according to recent postings). After all, motion in a fluid (air) should be
>much the same as motion in another fluid (water), and I assure you that it's
>possible for buoyant force to just match the gravitational force on a scuba
>diver.  Comments from anyone?
>
>					Rick.


Yeah, but I believe humans have a density close to that of water, not
air (unless you consider the bean-fed solutions posted :-) ).  I suppose
you could have people strapped to big dirigibles, but, again, you have
space problems (no pun intended...).  Buoyant forces are at least 
partially dependant on the local force of gravity, so to get much
buoyancy out of things, you'd need both a big dirigible and a reasonable
gravitational field, as well as some atmosphere.
  Another problem someone else in the Terminal Ward here pointed out is
though both air and water are fluids, air is easily compressible, so you
will not be able to just "scale up" the effects of water motions to air.
The best idea I've seen so far is forcibly throwing some mass away, like
a shoe, thrown underhand, probably.