With the death of Pope Francis, the world loses not only a church leader but also a moral compass
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Boeing: what happens when money trumps science
Industry insiders believe that Boeing, one of the world’s largest aeroplane manufacturers, has jeopardised passenger safety with its corporate strategy, write ROX MIDDLETON, LIAM SHAW and MIRIAM GAUNTLETT
DEADLY: A Boeing 737-800 crashed in 2009, killing nine near Amsterdam. It was later found that the Dutch investigation played down criticisms of design flaws under pressure from Boeing
LYNNE WALSH previews the Bristol Radical History Conference this weekend
Keir Starmer’s £120 million to Sudan cannot cover the government’s complicity in the RSF genocide or atone for the long shadow of British colonialism and imperialism, writes CLAUDIA WEBBE
Join the traditional march from Clerkenwell Green, which will bring together countless international workers’ organisations in a statement against the far right
Ecuador’s election wasn’t free — and its people will pay the price under President Noboa
Mountains of research show that hardcore material harms children, yet there are still no simple measures in place
We face austerity, privatisation, and toxic influence. But we are growing, and cannot be beaten
WITH an average of 5,500 aeroplanes landing and departing within Britain every day, short- and long-haul aeroplane journeys have become commonplace since the first scheduled commercial flight in 1914. Although the principles of flight may seem mystifying, aeroplanes today rely on simple fundamentals of aerodynamics — just as they did a hundred years ago.
The four forces that act on an aeroplane are lift, weight, thrust and drag. We can understand their interplay using Isaac Newton’s three laws of motion, formulated in the 17th century.
Thrust is generated by the engines of an aeroplane, acting forwards. Newton’s third law of motion states that every action (or force) has an equal and opposite reaction (force in the opposing direction).
The opposing force to thrust is drag, acting backwards. Drag arises from the aeroplane moving through the air (think about when you try to move through a strong wind and feel the resistance from the air pushing on you).
More from this author
Science has always been mixed up with money and power, but as a decorative facade for megayachts, it risks leaving reality behind altogether, write ROX MIDDLETON, LIAM SHAW and MIRIAM GAUNTLETT
A small Japanese trial has reported some positive results for stem cell therapy to treat spinal-cord injuries
Man-made canals like Panama and Suez face unprecedented challenges from extreme weather patterns and geopolitical tensions that reveal the fragility of our global trade networks, write ROX MIDDLETON, LIAM SHAW and MIRIAM GAUNTLETT
It’s sunny times for the solar industry which is expected to continue to grow rapidly — but there are still major environmental issues with how solar cells are made, explain ROX MIDDLETON, LIAM SHAW and MIRIAM GAUNTLETT
