2006-12-28 06:07:51 · 23 answers · asked by Humpy 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
i expect she's just feeling a bit grumpy on account of the paper cut.
2006-12-28 09:36:20 · answer #1 · answered by waif 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This is an example of a question which has 2 answers.
From the point of physics, she is indeed 'speed, distance, time' blind. They WILL get there quicker. Sorry Mum, you are wrong.
But she is answering from experience. Many roads are very busy, and a driver may take risks only to find that they have gained very little. Queuing traffic may mean that they only gain a few spaces, and then get held up at the traffic lights etc. So then she would be correct, they will only get there a negligible amount of time earlier than you. So in most cases, at busy times, she is right.
2006-12-28 06:28:55 · answer #2 · answered by ffordcash 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
As a point of fact, they may not get there much faster. If you were traveling sixty miles at sixty miles an hour, you'd get there in an hour. Traveling the same distance at 70 miles an hour, you'd save ten minutes. Big deal - especially if you risk getting a ticket...or worse. Averaging out the time compensation, even on long trips, only provides a slightly improved speed. However, as fuel consumption increases with speed, you will most likely make more stops for gas, nullifying time saved.
And, of course, increased speed in city driving means nothing in terms of time saved due largely to traffic signals. How many times has a car passed you, only for you to catch up to it at the light?
In terms of raw calculation, increased speed is a time saver, but that is theoretical. In practical terms, the net result is negligible.
2006-12-28 06:13:50 · answer #3 · answered by texascrazyhorse 4 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Oh dear she must be one of the pootlers I keep getting stuck behind.In a 60mph limit they pootle at around 35-40 mph,(even through 30 mph limits)...apparently oblivious to the snake-line tailback they are causing.Another geriatric behind refuses to overtake and the next or next but one car is forced to overtake 2 or 3 cars to get past.If they do.. the pootler gives them a nasty...'what the hell did you do that for?' look and a flash of headlights.It's these pootlers that cause the accidents...if they drove at a reasonable speed,55-60, most people would n't be forced into risky manouvres.
2006-12-28 22:38:29 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
There's numerous factors to consider.
They won't get where any faster?
Any faster than what?
The very fact that they're now ahead of you means that they have got to where you're going before you have, so she's wrong in that sense and you can quite accurately say "You're wrong, mum. They've already reached those traffic lights, and we're still thirty yards away".
The tortoise and hare thing does make sense up to a point.
Over a 300 mile trip, going a steady 70mph you can do the whole trip on one tank of fuel and have some to spare. Jacking that up to 85mph, you'll probably need to stop for fuel before you arrive, thus reducing your over-all speed.
I think that they're just trying to get as far away as possible from your mad mum.
Cheers.
2006-12-28 07:15:57 · answer #5 · answered by chopchubes 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is just her way of saying, "calm down and be patient. We will get there soon enough." Also, there may be a red light in the next block and you will catch up to the car that passed you so that his extra speed at the moment he passed you did him no good at all. Or you might pass him as he sits by the side of the road getting a speeding ticket. There are all kinds of reasons why that car that passed you might not get there sooner.
2006-12-28 07:26:13 · answer #6 · answered by campbelp2002 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, shes right. I had to take a driver safety class to get some of my driving points back. And they taught us that you basically have to go 20-25 mph over the limit to get somewhere a mere 2 minutes quicker. Speeding aint worth the risk of being killed in a bad car accident.
2006-12-28 06:11:49 · answer #7 · answered by trishay79 4 · 7⤊ 0⤋
Because of the average traffic speed limit and traffic lights the time saved in speeding is very minimal. There's been many test that's been done about this, even one of the AAA commercial talks about this.
2006-12-28 06:16:34 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's just her excuse for driving the speed limit. OF COURSE a faster object will reach its destination faster than a slower object! It's all a matter of where the destination is; if you are going to the same place they are they will get there faster but if you are going somewhere closer you may get there faster.
2006-12-28 06:29:15 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
She's just reassuring the driver (who may be herself) that the present speed is fine for her.
An old man taught me a similar saying, when I was about to step off a pavement.
"It's better to be late in this world than early in the next."
Please tell it to your Mum, it may amuse her. (And give her another little saying to drive the kids crazy on car journeys!)
2006-12-28 06:37:25 · answer #10 · answered by rosie recipe 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Pay attention to your Mum! You might learn something!!
Watch for the cars that speed by and I bet you will find you catch up to them, especially in city traffic!
2006-12-28 06:12:38 · answer #11 · answered by sunkissed 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋