Fact of the Day: 18/03/2021

Why are simple harmonic oscillators considered ‘simple?’ If you read yesterday’s Daily Fact, you’ll know the definition of a simple harmonic oscillator, and that a mass on a spring is an example of one. A simple pendulum is also a simple harmonic oscillator, though only if you move the bob a little bit from the equilibrium position and not too much. However, you may still be wondering where the ‘simple’ part comes in. Actually, simple harmonic oscillators have such predictable behavior that they can be described by sine and cosine functions, which comes in handy if you know trigonometry. The alternative to a simple harmonic oscillator is a non-simple harmonic oscillator. A fascinating example of a non-simple harmonic oscillator is a double pendulum – yes, a single pendulum is simple, but a double one isn’t! In fact, a double pendulum is considered a chaotic system, and the behavior is so random and complex that computer simulations are needed to represent it. You can check out this amazing video if you’d like to see exactly what a double pendulum looks like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0Z8wLLPNE0

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