Sickness on the water under a scientific perspective

Going on the water requires the running speed to be outside the human limit without the tools to support it.

The Chinese social network recently circulated a video of "publicity" performances on the water surface of the monk Thich Li Liang. In the video shot from 2015, this tank runs 125 meters on the lake surface by stepping into wooden panels connected together.

Thich Li Liang's performance was controversial in the Chinese online community, when many people believed that this "scouting" technique was a scam, because humans were unable to move on the water.

Picture 1 of Sickness on the water under a scientific perspective
Performances go on the water of the monk Thich Ly Luong.

Some European athletes who have demonstrated the ability to move on the water in a video called "Liquid Mountaineering" attracted nearly 20 million views since posting on YouTube in April 2010, according to Popular Mechanics. In the video, Hi-Tech Sports declares special waterproof shoes that allow users to surf the water.

However, scientists believe that the fact that people surf on the lake only with waterproof shoes is a trick to attract the audience.

According to scientists, the larger the contact area of ​​the object with the water, the smaller its own weight. If the specific gravity is less than the surface tension of the water surface, the object will not sink. According to calculations, to be able to run on water like that, European athletes must have ridiculously big shoes.


The high-ranking Shaolin player performed the scouting on the water.

Hi-Tech Sports then admitted to staging a fever video and said the effect was created by a bridge under the water.

In the case of Master Li Li Liang, in order not to sink when surfing on the water, he must create a balance with his weight , by pushing the water back and down deeply after every step .

According to calculations, for a man wearing shoes of size 42, the minimum amount of water that he needs to push after each kick to not sink is 3.5kg, according to Science Focus.

If this person weighs 75kg and each step pushes 3.5kg of water, he will move at 11m / s, equivalent to about 40km / h on the water.

However, when pushing away water, the person moving will bear the reaction of water. Therefore, the runner must achieve double the speed to advance. Thus, the speed he needs to achieve is 80km / h, close to the speed of the train, not counting the friction and the viscosity of the liquid will slow down the motion.


The filmmakers acknowledge staging a video surfing the water.

Running on water in a curve also does not help support weight. " However, if they can run fast enough, every time the foot kicks on the water, it will provide an inertial force. If the foot is pulled fast enough before sinking, the moving person can continue with the other leg. is a way to run on the water of Jesus lizards , " said John Bush, a professor of applied mathematics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

According to JW Glasheen and TA McMahon, two Harvard University biologists used to study how lizards Jesus ran on the water, to mimic this lizard, that humans would have to run nearly 30m / s, exceeding speed. human ability. The world's fastest athlete Usain Bolt has just reached 10.4m / s.

According to Bush, running on water can only be possible with the help of equipment and tools, such as wooden planks, plus the ability to train for long periods of people.