A new "floating" backpack could solve many of the problems that come with hiking and distance-walking. Click here and read the article, but be sure to watch the video to see this fascinating pack in action.
Part of my brain is saying that it looks too good to be true... but the other part of my brain is trying to figure out why it wouldn't work. Color me intrigued.
For me, the too-good-to-be-true part is that the apparatus weighs a whole kilo, which is deadly when every gram counts. If, however, this is compensated by the way the pack operates, thus making life easier on your back, then I'm eager to try it and walk a couple days with it. (Does it make life easier on your feet as well?)
I recall my physics teacher in high school saying that, given how "work" is calculated in physics, if you walk while holding a briefcase perfectly level—i.e., such that it's not moving up and down while you walk—you're technically doing zero work while you move the briefcase across X distance. That seems to be what this pack facilitates: keeping itself level while you walk with a natural bounce to your stride. It's a zero-work pack, in essence.
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Part of my brain is saying that it looks too good to be true... but the other part of my brain is trying to figure out why it wouldn't work. Color me intrigued.
ReplyDeleteFor me, the too-good-to-be-true part is that the apparatus weighs a whole kilo, which is deadly when every gram counts. If, however, this is compensated by the way the pack operates, thus making life easier on your back, then I'm eager to try it and walk a couple days with it. (Does it make life easier on your feet as well?)
ReplyDeleteI recall my physics teacher in high school saying that, given how "work" is calculated in physics, if you walk while holding a briefcase perfectly level—i.e., such that it's not moving up and down while you walk—you're technically doing zero work while you move the briefcase across X distance. That seems to be what this pack facilitates: keeping itself level while you walk with a natural bounce to your stride. It's a zero-work pack, in essence.