Outline of the Second Term Paper

Introduction

• The physics principle I would like to focus on for this paper is Newton’s third law of motion. Newton’s third law states that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

• This principle is often violated in animated features for various reasons. The examples that I will be talking about violate Newton’s third law on purpose for comedy or to show a character’s strength.
• For my three examples, I wanted to find scenes from three different types of animated films/shows, like 2D traditional animation, 3D computer animation, and live action with the use of CG effects.
• Thesis

Body Paragraphs

Para 1

• I chose a Wile E. Coyote and The Road Runner scene from a Merrie Melodies episode as an example of a purposeful violation of Newton’s third law of motion from 2D traditional animation
• The scene shows Wile E. Coyote setting up a spring-activated boxing glove attached to a big rock which he then hides behind before activating. Instead of the lighter boxing glove flying forward, the small spring pushes the big heavy rock and Wile E. Coyote violently backward. The small force of the spring has an unequal and large opposite reaction in the wrong direction.
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Para 2

• I chose a scene from Kung Fu Panda as an example of a purposeful violation of Newton’s third law of motion in a 3D computer animation.
• The scene is from near the end of the movie when Po fights Tai Lung. The forces that the characters exert on each other (like sending them flying very high straight up into the air) and their environment (making craters in the ground) don’t seem to have equal and opposite reactions. The reactions are often over-exaggerated compared to the force behind the actions.

Para 3

• I chose a scene from Shaolin Soccer as an example of a purposeful violation of Newton’s third law of motion in a live action film with a lot of CG effects.
• The scene I chose to focus on is one in which the main protagonist is repeatedly kicking a soccer ball at high speeds into a concrete wall. As he does so he causes the wall to crack and crumble. Forces strong enough to do that much damage to the wall should break the bones of his legs.

Possible Fourth Paragraph

• Some examples of Newton’s third law of motion appearing to be violated on accident in an animation or live action CG movie.

Conclusion