Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84 exptools; site ihnet.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!ihnp4!ihnet!eklhad
From: eklhad@ihnet.UUCP (K. A. Dahlke)
Newsgroups: net.bio
Subject: Up The Down Escalator
Message-ID: <237@ihnet.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 4-Jun-85 16:07:09 EDT
Article-I.D.: ihnet.237
Posted: Tue Jun  4 16:07:09 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 6-Jun-85 02:22:44 EDT
Distribution: net
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories
Lines: 20

<  I seem to get no where  >
	Suppose we have two men, X and Y.  X is climbing a long flight
of stairs, while Y is climbing a down escalator.
X has already begun his ascent, and is no longer accelerating.
Y also has a constant velocity, namely 0 (relative to the building).
As Y climbs up, the escalator moves down.
The question, who is doing more work?
I did not submit this question to net.physics, because I already
know the physics answer.  X is traversing a distance, against a force,
line integrals F.dS etc etc, and so X is doing work while Y is lazy.
However, X and Y seem to be making the same movements, against the same force.
Who is burning more calories?  Who is working harder biologically?
If X is working harder, what is he doing differently?
It seems like, somewhere in each step, X must pay a price.
If the effort expended is comparable, better move to the stairs,
at least you get somewhere that way.
Any help appreciated.
-- 

Karl Dahlke    ihnp4!ihnet!eklhad