Do you get less wet if you run in the rain? • Hacker News Board

Re: Do you get less wet if you run in the rain?

#31

Post by RiderOfGiraffes » Fri, May 22, 2009, 7:41 PM UTC

staticshock wrote: post #27

RiderOfGiraffes wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If I've parsed that correctly, you're wrong. The following are true: For a given amount of time, running in the rain makes you more wet. For a given distance, running in the rain makes you less wet. Running reduces your exposure time by more than the increase in rain_per_time. Perhaps I've simply mis-understood you.

what he means is that running gets you more wet per time unit compared to walking

But isn't that completely obvious? Surely he must mean more than that, otherwise his "contribution" is completely pointless.

Re: Do you get less wet if you run in the rain?

#32

Post by RiderOfGiraffes » Fri, May 22, 2009, 7:42 PM UTC

run4yourlives wrote: post #22

RiderOfGiraffes wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, but for a given distance you get less rain on the windscreen when you drive fast, rather than driving slowly.

Of course, because you've substantially reduced your exposure time. But the act of increasing your speed itself actually causes you to come in contact with more raindrops, not less.

Per unit time, yes. Per unit distance, no.

I'm just not getting you. I'm giving up.

Re: Do you get less wet if you run in the rain?

#33

Post by wvl » Fri, May 22, 2009, 8:33 PM UTC

yummyfajitas wrote: post #4

I once asked this question on a calculus exam.

This question is the reason I went into engineering.

I learned calculus by correspondence in high school. Solving this problem transformed calculus in my mind from just some abstract problems to solve into something useful. It was a big turning point for me, and focused my interests in areas of applied math.

Re: Do you get less wet if you run in the rain?

#34

Post by _cbsz » Sat, May 23, 2009, 12:40 AM UTC

tlrobinson wrote: post #25

I used to ride my bike to class in the rain, and I would always get more wet than if I walked.

It's possible for this to be true, since on a bicycle you may tend to expose both your back and front to the rain more so than when walking.

Re: Do you get less wet if you run in the rain?

#35

Post by jaydub » Sun, May 24, 2009, 11:46 AM UTC

_cbsz wrote: post #34

tlrobinson wrote: post #25

I used to ride my bike to class in the rain, and I would always get more wet than if I walked.

It's possible for this to be true, since on a bicycle you may tend to expose both your back and front to the rain more so than when walking.

Also, chances are that you kick up water as well