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Mythbusters Cannonball Experiment Goes Horribly Wrong - Can We All Say OOOPS?!

This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American


How much science saavy does it take to be a Mythbuster? Apparently, not enough. Today the residents of Dublin, California became the recipients of some serious miscalculations by the folks of this notoriously popular television series. A cannonball, travelling at bullet speeds of over 1000 feet per second, slammed into several houses and vehicles this afternoon. (Check out the flight path below in a cool graphic created by perceptionbuilder.com.) Well mythbusters, it's never too late to brush up on the physics of projectile motion (or is it??). Apparently the show is on hold pending a full investigation.

 


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Carin Bondar is a biologist, writer and film-maker with a PhD in population ecology from the University of British Columbia. Find Dr. Bondar online at www.carinbondar.com, on twitter @drbondar or on her facebook page: Dr. Carin Bondar – Biologist With a Twist.

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