Seraph wrote:Coito ergo sum wrote:egbert wrote:Every time I see some rag tag Libyan "freedom fighters" being interviewed for TV news, they're inevitably whooping it up by firing bursts of automatic weapons fire into the air. What goes up inevitably comes down - how many have been killed by their own bullets?
Well, firing a bullet straight up is like dropping the bullet from the highest point it goes. It won't be coming down fast enough to kill anyone. It has to be fired at an angle sufficiently off the y axis (verticle) to have enough velocity to kill someone.
Coito, would you please, for once in your life, stop arguing and concede that you were wrong about something? (and I am not referring to the spelling mistake)
I haven't been arguing, have I? But, since you want to bring it up....
Read what I wrote and comprehend the words. If the bullet goes straight up, it won't come down fast enough. That's the fucking truth. The problem occurs when the bullet is not fired exactly straight up and is "sufficiently off the y axis" -- which is exactly what I fucking wrote.
The Mythbusters agree with me, and they did controlled experiments:
"In the case of a bullet fired at a precisely vertical angle (something extremely difficult for a human being to duplicate), the bullet would tumble, lose its spin, and fall at a much slower speed due to terminal velocity and is therefore rendered less than lethal on impact."
However --
However, if a bullet is fired upward at a non-vertical angle (a far more probable possibility), it will maintain its spin and will reach a high enough speed to be lethal on impact.
How is this any different than what I wrote and you quoted? What the FUCK am I supposed to admit I was wrong about? FFS...you people...
http://mythbustersresults.com/episode50
It's why the Mythbusters gave this myth both "busted" and "confirmed." Because while if fired precisely straight up in the air, the bullet will not come down fast enough, if you fire it off at an angle, it very well might.
So - tell me - please - what am I supposed to admit I'm wrong about? You quoted this as being "wrong" --- "Well, firing a bullet straight up is like dropping the bullet from the highest point it goes. It won't be coming down fast enough to kill anyone. It has to be fired at an angle sufficiently off the y axis (verticle) to have enough velocity to kill someone." This is EXACTLY what the Mythbusters found -- fire it straight up, it'll be too slow due to terminal velocity - but, move it off the y axis, and it can be lethal. Isn't that right?