Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Acceleration Vectors

Acceleration Vectors

In everyday conversation, accelerating means speeding up. Acceleration is a vector in the same direction as the change in velocity, Δv, therefore the greater the acceleration, the greater the change in velocity over a given time. Since velocity is a vector, it can change in magnitude, direction, or both. Thus acceleration is a change in speed or direction, or both. For example, if a runner traveling at 10 km/h due east slows to a stop, reverses direction, and continues their run at 10 km/h due...

Instantaneous Acceleration

Instantaneous Acceleration

Acceleration is in the direction of the change in velocity, but it is not always in the direction of motion. When an object slows down, its acceleration is opposite to the direction of its motion. Although commonly referred to as deceleration, this causes confusion in our analysis as deceleration is not a vector, and does not point to a specific direction with respect to a coordinate system. Therefore, the term deceleration is not used. For example, when a subway train slows down, it...

Drag Force and Terminal Speed

Drag Force and Terminal Speed

An interesting force in everyday life is the force of drag on an object when it is moving in a fluid. Like friction, the drag force always opposes the motion of an object. Unlike simple friction, the drag force is proportional to some function of the velocity of the object in that fluid. This functionality is complicated and depends upon the shape of the object, its size, its velocity, and the fluid it is in. For most large objects, such as cyclists, cars, and baseballs, that are not moving too...

Accelerating Fluids

Accelerating Fluids

When a fluid is in constant acceleration, the pressure and buoyant force equations are modified. Suppose a beaker is placed in an elevator accelerating upward with a constant acceleration, a. In the beaker, assume there is a thin cylinder of height h with an infinitesimal cross-sectional area, ΔS.
The motion of the liquid within this infinitesimal cylinder is considered to obtain the pressure difference. Three vertical forces act on this liquid:

Fast Reactions

Fast Reactions

Fast reactions occurring in times shorter than the time needed to mix reactants pose a unique challenge for investigation. In a liquid-phase continuous-flow system, reactants A and B are swiftly pushed into the mixing chamber, where mixing occurs within 1 ms. The reaction mixture then flows through an observation tube, and one measures light absorption to determine species concentrations at various points of the tube. This method is most appropriate when relatively large volumes of reactants...

Average Acceleration

Average Acceleration

The importance of understanding acceleration spans our day-to-day experiences, as well as the vast reaches of outer space and the tiny world of subatomic physics. In everyday conversation, to accelerate means to speed up. For instance, we are familiar with the acceleration of our car; the harder we apply our foot to the gas pedal, the faster we accelerate. The greater the acceleration, the greater the change in velocity over a given time. Acceleration is widely seen in experimental physics. In...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Substrate Interactions and Free-Swimming Dynamics in the Crayfish Escape Response.

Integrative organismal biology (Oxford, England)·2024

Same author

Learning functionals via LSTM neural networks for predicting vessel dynamics in extreme sea states.

Proceedings. Mathematical, physical, and engineering sciences·2021

Same author

A robotic Intelligent Towing Tank for learning complex fluid-structure dynamics.

Science robotics·2020

Same author

Efficiency of fish propulsion.

Bioinspiration & biomimetics·2015

Same author

Ultra-fast escape maneuver of an octopus-inspired robot.

Bioinspiration & biomimetics·2015

Same author

Mechanical characteristics of harbor seal (Phoca vitulina) vibrissae under different circumstances and their implications on its sensing methodology.

Bioinspiration & biomimetics·2014

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 10, 2026

Swimming Performance Assessment in Fishes

Swimming Performance Assessment in Fishes

Published on: May 20, 2011

A fast-starting mechanical fish that accelerates at 40 m s(-2).

J Conte¹, Y Modarres-Sadeghi, M N Watts

¹Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, USA.

Bioinspiration & Biomimetics

|August 24, 2010

Summary

Researchers developed a mechanical fish model to study fish fast-start performance. This model achieved high acceleration and revealed key hydrodynamic principles, offering insights into fish propulsion efficiency.

More Related Videos

A Swimming-Induced Zebrafish Exercise Apparatus for Versatile Training Approaches

A Swimming-Induced Zebrafish Exercise Apparatus for Versatile Training Approaches

Published on: October 18, 2024

Using Touch-evoked Response and Locomotion Assays to Assess Muscle Performance and Function in Zebrafish

Using Touch-evoked Response and Locomotion Assays to Assess Muscle Performance and Function in Zebrafish

Published on: October 31, 2016

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 10, 2026

Swimming Performance Assessment in Fishes

Swimming Performance Assessment in Fishes

Published on: May 20, 2011

A Swimming-Induced Zebrafish Exercise Apparatus for Versatile Training Approaches

A Swimming-Induced Zebrafish Exercise Apparatus for Versatile Training Approaches

Published on: October 18, 2024

Using Touch-evoked Response and Locomotion Assays to Assess Muscle Performance and Function in Zebrafish

Using Touch-evoked Response and Locomotion Assays to Assess Muscle Performance and Function in Zebrafish

Published on: October 31, 2016

Area of Science:

Biomechanics
Hydrodynamics
Robotics

Background:

Fish fast-start is crucial for predator evasion and prey capture.
Understanding the biomechanics of fish propulsion is key to biomimetic design.
Pike species are well-studied specialists in fast-start maneuvers.

Purpose of the Study:

To create a mechanical system emulating fish fast-start performance.
To quantify the propulsion efficiency of a mechanical fish model.
To analyze the hydrodynamic wake generated during a fast-start maneuver.

Main Methods:

Constructed a mechanical fish with a metal beam, urethane rubber body, and shaped tail, modeled after a pike.
Utilized a pneumatic system to release stored potential energy in the beam, initiating acceleration.
Measured acceleration and final velocity, calculated hydrodynamic efficiency, and performed flow visualization.

Main Results:

The mechanical fish achieved a maximum acceleration of approximately 40 m/s² and a final velocity of 1.2 m/s.
The hydrodynamic efficiency was calculated to be around 10%.
Flow visualization revealed that acceleration peaks correlate with the shedding of two lateral vortex rings.

Conclusions:

The mechanical model successfully emulates key aspects of fish fast-start dynamics.
The study provides quantitative data on propulsion efficiency and associated flow patterns.
Findings contribute to understanding fish biomechanics and inform biomimetic underwater vehicle design.