HISTORY:
Acrobatics goes back to the time of the ancient Greeks. The word "acrobat"
itself actually originated from the Greek language. The sport grew in popularity
in the eighteenth century in Europe, especially with the popularity of the circus.
Acrobatics is a demonstration involving great agility and complexity. Acrobatics
is now seen in many other athletic events other than the circus, where it began.
Some of the well-known sports that involve acrobatics are gymnastics, ice-skating,
roller-skating, and diving.
TRAINING:
Most acrobats that are seen in the circus have gone through extensive training
programs that have lasted for several years. Even after the initial training,
they are required to keep up their training everyday in order to maintain their
current difficulty level and increase their level. Many acrobats in the circus
are former competitive gymnasts. The acrobats have to have a high level of flexibility,
strength, and knowledge of their body relative to the ground. One of the main
physics concepts that is taught to the acrobats is the ability for them to find
their center of gravity and be able to do so quickly. If they are unable to
find their center, they will not be able to hold their current position, either
in a handstand or in a pyramid.
SAFETY ISSUES:
Safety is a major requirement when dealing with any aspect of the circus, especially
events that the performers are flying high many times. The acrobats need to
make sure that they are fully prepared to initiate the skill they are to perform
and have taken all precautions necessary. One of the main precautions is the
existence of mats when tumbling. In the long run, the hard ground can wear down
the body of the performer and cause her to get injuries such as stress fractures.
Also, when the stunt performed is some sort of a pyramid, excess performers
are needed around the pyramid to spot the persons actually performing the stunt.
The spotters are there to catch the performers if something happens to go wrong
and they fall.
TECHNIQUE:
The main technique required to become an acrobat is having the ability to know
where your center of gravity is at all times. Many know where it is, but the
difficult part is actually being able to maintain your stability while upside
down or in the air. The acrobat has to be able to equate the sum of the torque
on each individual part to the torque at the center of gravity. The upward force
of the support, n, has to equal the downward force of the acrobat or acrobats
weight, w. The sum of these forces must be equal to zero to be in an equilibrium
system. If these two forces are equal to zero, then the acrobat is balanced
in her position, or the pyramid formed by many acrobats is in balance.
Click here to see how two
bodies remain in equilibrium:
acrobats one - In Windows
Media Player (Video File)
acrobats two - In Windows
Media Player (Video File)
FREE BODY DIAGRAM:
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LINKS:
http://meltingpot.fortunecity.com/belgium/256/index.html
http://www.geocities.com/Colosseum/Park/2414/index.html
http://www.users.bigpond.com/rodtrapeze/images/trio.jpg
http://www.adagioact.com
http://www.Earthcapades.com/pics.html
