Gravity Gif

[Velia Blacksmith]

Gravity is a force that we experience every day, yet it remains somewhat of a mystery. It's the reason we stay grounded on Earth and why objects fall when dropped. Although there are several theories attempting to explain gravity, scientists still don't completely understand it.

In this article, we will answer the question, "What is gravity?" by exploring Newton's and Einstein's theories of gravity, discussing more recent views and touching on the role of gravity in our solar system and everyday life.

gravity gif

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Newton publicized his Theory of Universal Gravitation in the 1680s. It basically set forth the idea that gravity is a predictable force that acts on all matter in the universe, and is a function of both mass and distance. The theory states that each particle of matter attracts every other particle (for instance, the particles of "Earth" and the particles of "you") with a force that is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.

where G is the gravitational constant, m1 and m2 are the masses of the two objects for which you are calculating the force, and d is the distance between the centers of gravity of the two masses.

The force of gravity acting on an object is also that object's weight. When you step on a scale, the scale reads how much gravity is acting on your body. The formula to determine weight is [source: Kurtus]:

Albert Einstein, who won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1921, contributed an alternate theory of gravity in the early 1900s. It was part of his famous General Theory of Relativity, and it offered a very different explanation from Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation.

Einstein didn't believe gravity was a force at all; he said it was a distortion in the shape of space-time, otherwise known as "the fourth dimension" (see How Special Relativity Works to learn about space-time).

More recent theories of gravity express the phenomenon in terms of particles and waves. One view suggests that particles called gravitons cause objects to be attracted to one another. However, gravitons have never been observed.

The force of gravity is not the same everywhere on Earth. It is slightly weaker at the equator due to the centrifugal force caused by Earth's rotation and the fact that the Earth is not a perfect sphere but an oblate spheroid. Gravity is stronger at the poles and weaker at higher altitudes. This variation is why your weight can change slightly if you travel from one location to another on Earth's surface.

The gravitational attraction between everyday objects, like a book and a pen, is incredibly weak because their masses are so small. However, the cumulative effect of Earth's gravity is what keeps everything anchored to the ground.

While we have made significant progress in understanding gravity, it remains a fascinating and somewhat mysterious phenomenon. Whether it is the force that keeps us grounded, the reason planets orbit the sun, or the subject of groundbreaking scientific theories, gravity is a fundamental force that shapes our universe and everyday lives.

It's impossible to understand the way NBA offenses and defenses operate without understanding gravity. No, not the force Sir Isaac Newton discovered that keeps you from dunking without a trampoline. We're talking about the basketball version of it, the one that governs where defenders position themselves and helps determine the success and failure of offenses.

Every offensive player has gravity -- but not all players have the same gravity. (More on that in a second.) Beyond them, the ball has gravity, because of the need to pressure the ball-handler and keep him from getting a wide-open shot. And the basket itself has gravity, since the highest-percentage shots tend to be taken from close range.

More than anything else, the primary factor determining a player's gravity is their shooting ability. Defenders can't stray from good shooters like Kyle Korver lest they give up an open shot -- and then get chewed out by their coach. Against weaker shooters, defenders can cheat an extra step toward the ball or the paint, making it easier for them to offer help to teammates.

Crucially, though, gravity is contextual. Shooting ability is most important when players are off the ball. When it's in their hands, the ability to drive and make plays for teammates become paramount factors. Consider the difference in how a player like Tony Parker is defended with and without the ball. And location on the court also matters. A put-back specialist with limited range has almost no gravity when he plays on the perimeter, but high gravity inside the paint because of the threat he poses on the offensive glass.

The best offenses account for all of these factors, and put their players in positions where they have the most gravity. Bad offenses feature low gravity, which means poor spacing and limited driving lanes to the hoop.

The gravity theory is simple enough, and I've been using it to describe offenses for years. Quantifying gravity to understand how it actually plays out on the court is another matter entirely. While it might be teased out of plus-minus data, nothing in the box score reflects a player's gravitational pull.

Over the summer, STATS Inc. introduced a pair of new statistics utilizing SportVU data to measure the gravitational force of players without the ball. The first, named "gravity score," measures how closely the primary defender defends a player off the ball at any given time. The second, "distraction score," quantifies how much attention the primary defender gives the ball-handler.

The graphic below, courtesy of STATS, shows what each of these metrics measures for Los Angeles Clippers forward Matt Barnes. The gravity score is how close his defender (Kevin Durant) is to Barnes, and the distraction score is how close his defender is to the ball-handler (Chris Paul).

Since I often have several sites using a paid plugin like gravity forms, I create a git repo with the source of the plugin and a composer.json file, so that I can add it as a source control repository and it is easy for me to update many sites at once. I just update my gravityforms repository, then composer update each site.

Some of those plugins are GPL like gravityforms, so I just put it on a public github repo. Sometimes it is a custom proprietary plugin that I use on multiple sites, in which case I use a private repo.

The gravity data describes country characteristics and relationships between two trading partners. This data covers the period between 1948 and 2019 and contains variables describing macroeconomic indicators, geographic characteristics, trade facilitation measures, cultural relationships, and institutional stability measures. In order to accurately reflect the dynamic nature of the globe, the dataset follows the formation and dissolution of countries each year and features extensive time variation in corresponding variables.

The gravity data describes country characteristics and relationships between two trading partners. This data covers a total of 286 countries between 1948 and 2016 and contains more than 60 variables describing macroeconomic indicators, geographic characteristics, trade facilitation measures, cultural relationships, and institutional stability measures. In order to accurately reflect the dynamic nature of the globe, the dataset follows the formation and dissolution of countries each year and features extensive time variation in corresponding variables.

The fundamental force of attraction that all objects with mass have for each other. Like the electromagnetic force, gravity has effectively infinite range and obeys the inverse-square law. At the atomic level, where masses are very small, the force of gravity is negligible, but for objects that have very large masses such as planets, stars, and galaxies, gravity is a predominant force, and it plays an important role in theories of the structure of the universe. Gravity is believed to be mediated by the graviton, although the graviton has yet to be isolated by experiment. Gravity is weaker than the strong force, the electromagnetic force, and the weak force. Also called gravitation See more at acceleration relativity.

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