the phyisics of skyfall: why Bond has accieved "immortal" status
Entry posted by Ben Shelton
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So I watched the latest James Bond movie, Skyfall, for the third time yesterday (thank you netflix) and noticed some irregularites. If you don't want to have the first fifteen muinites of the movie spoiled read no further. So Bond gets shot off the top of a moveing train, falls from an insane hight into a moveing river, and then falls off an equally high water fall. Here's the thing: he survives! I did some phyisics to find out if this was phyisicly possible. The bridge Bond fell off was three hundred and twenty two feet high. From that hight water is like concrete because it's tension will not break at the speed Bond was going when he hit it. to find out that speed I have to add his initial velocity (zero) to his acceleration (9.81 meters per second squared) times the time of his fall ( six seconds). Bond's velocity when he hits the water is 58.86 meters per second. To double check my work, I will also use the other formula, because the movie showed the fall in a couple shots and I don't know if the time is accurate. initial velocity squared( 0) plus two times Acceleration (9.81 meters per second squared) times distiance (322 feet = 98 meters). This time I got 31.1 meters per second squared. I'm more inclined to trust the second awnser because I know the hight for sure. This converts to about 129 miles per hour for the first velocity, and 80 for the second. Any human body hitting the water at those speeds would encounter massive ammounts of surface tension, like hitting a brick wall, and just shatter on impact. The verdict: James Bond is now immune to the laws of phyisics as well as enemy spies and hitmen(and thier tanks and submarines and assult planes and helicopters and everything else). Apperently he only lives twice, but never needs to use that second life because he has a licence to never be killed by anything.
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