An Animated Gif Thread

Mythbusters did an episode about that. Way back before they turned into "let's recreate hollywood stunts and EXPLOSIONS!".

DAMNIT! There's a next page button, isn't there?

Or demonic possession.

Satan knows his own and has no need to possess cats.

That might be what jerri blank meant; the cat was on its way to possess Satan.

Don't. I am not even sure. But if you compare the two, the cat in the original post moves very, very uncoordinated, and with no apparent orientation until it drops from the table. The second looks weird, but the movement is smooth and coordinated. But again, I am no vet and am just guessing.

Some people may be grossed out by this... (dunno who though).

OK - this is why they talk about safe following distances.. there is just zero time for the following driver to react to this in any way shape or form

Except was taught that two car lengths was good, which this looks like it is. They must be driving very fast and the truck must be coming to a full stop awfully sudden... I wish there was more t the video.

Two car lengths isn't enough unless you're going really slowly. I was always told you need two seconds (at whatever speed you're travelling) worth of space. A lot more on icy/snowy roads like in that image.

I was taught one car length for every 10 mph, but no one actually does that. I would say the bigger problem in that clip is driving too fast for conditions.

eh, someone hit that truck full frontal, what it looks like. probably not too comfortable for the driver. :(

There's a road safety ad that plays on TV here - it advocates the two-second rule that Jamie Madigan referred to. I.e., you should be able to pick a point along the road (a sign, for example) and count at least two seconds from the time the car ahead of you passes it to when you pass it.

To me it looks like the truck got caught in a head-on collision with an object of similar mass & speed, e.g. another truck. There is a small outline to the left of the truck a second before it stops, and it seems to come pretty much to a full stop. Overall I guess at least one fatality in that gif.

Edit: Damn, Astromarine.

BETTER THAN YOU!

You're right of course, and it's also what I was taught and use, so I don't know why I suddenly remebered something else.
And yes, in conditions like those you need even more, which isn't the case in the clip - and a head on collision would explain the sudden stop.

Makes you realize the importance of that rule.

That kid is an amateur. My younger son would aim for a back flip just as hard as he could, so you had to always keep a hand behind his head. He flipped himself a full 270 degrees out of one of those spring chairs you attach to door lintels, landing on his stomach.

Kids are amazingly suicidal.

Two seconds is a good minimum, I generally try for 3 or 4, or find a pocket where I can get even more. That's aiming for avoiding events in front of you that are still travelling forward though.

If there are other cars nearby and something like that truck crash happens you're just screwed. A couple extra car lengths isn't going to make much difference.

might on the lethality or dodging window though, but yeah, scant chance of breaking.

True, an extra second or two will at least give you a chance to slow down, and since the collision energy scales with your speed squared that could easily make a difference.

They teach four seconds here for bad conditions.

That truck didn't just stop, it's coming straight at the camera.

Okay, so... the bad pun here, I am unable to resist:

That's gotta be one hot dog!

Thank you, thank you very much.

And quite possibly three. It's really uncomfortable watching.

I watched that for far too long, waiting for the funny.