Is IT true that according to the laws of physics a bee cant fly?

Question

if so which is incorrect my brain or the laws of physics

Answer 1

Yes, this was thought to be the case until relatively recently.

If you take the weight of a bee, the surface area of it's wings and the power available from it's flight muscles and put them all into an equation, it comes up short and the bee shouldn't be able to fly. Luckily, bees don't know this, which is why they can.

The true reason that bees can fly is that they have a wonderful material called "elastin" in their exoskeleton. When a bee's wing reaches the end of its "stroke" or beat, the elastin absorbs the energy required to stop the wing and returns it to the wing, thereby aiding the muscles that oscillate the wing. This means that the bees flight muscles can operate with, in effect, more than 100% efficiency. Of course, they aren't really operating at more than 100%. There is just a mechanism in the system that wasn't included in the original equation because no-one knew of the existence of elastin.

That was the position in the early 1970s when I was doing animal mechanics as part of my zoology degree. It is possible that new discoveries have been made since then that makes that explanation a load of old tosh. I will look into this and let you know .

ERRATUM. Sorry my mistake, elastin is the name of the protein when found in mammals. When it's in arthropods it's called RESILIN. (Still, not bad after 37 years).

Answer 2

Are you suggesting that bees do not abide by the laws of physics?

Physics attempts to described observed phenomena. You can argue the case based on false premises yet the bee still flies. In the past, man failed to explain the bees ability to fly, however, like science inevitably does, the laws defined by man were revised to more accuratly describe the observation that is the busy bee.

Of course the law of physics applies to bees!

Answer 3

ok... the laws of physics and gravity the bee can only fly with the support of air flowing under the wings but if the air only pushed down it wouldnt

Answer 4

well i dont see how thats the case if they do fly and have wings...

Answer 5

The aero dynamics of a bee are faltered

therefore it shoudnt be able to fly bt since its wing are bigger and more powerfull it woulld be able to fly

havent you heard a buzz

Answer 6

no its not

its a stupid urban myth

Answer 7

yes it is true, look it up

Answer 8

no it is true

the weight of the bee body its to heavy for its little body to carry but soem how they still manage to fly

i love watchign them fly they fly up and down and wiggle about its cool lol

Answer 9

but according to the laws of nature they can, so that's okay then

Answer 10

Obviously not as bees do fly.

Answer 11

First it was thought and predicted that bumblebees shoud not be able to fly from the calculation made by applying the equations of air resistance to bumblebees by  M. Magnan & Mr. Saint-Lague in 1934

In 2005 Michael Dickinson and his Caltech colleagues found that sufficient lift was generated by the unconventional combination of short, choppy wing strokes, a rapid rotation of the wing as it flops over and reverses direction, and a very fast wing-beat frequency. It flaps approximately 230 times per second.

Answer 12

The drugs will turn your brain to mash man!

Lay off them

Answer 13

No. In the past, it was thought a bumble bee shouldn't be able to fly, but it was at a point in time when they only had a limited knowledge of aerodynamics, fluid mechanics and flight.

As your brain shows you and mathematics proves, a bumble bee CAN fly.

Answer 14

but they do fly and they have wings .......

Answer 15

no, it is not, proof bees can fly