if everyone...

[bobb1985]

if everyone walked the opposite way to the earths rotation would the earth stop spinning. my work colleague gwilym stated this but he's weird. please clarify. thanks

[ugly_bob]

no. There's far too much mass in the earth.
Even if every person on earth weighed 100kg (which they dont!!) the earth still weighs 10,000,000,000,000 times more than the combined total of humans!

[Loosehead]

and before you ask if we all ran in the same direction of rotaton it wouldn't speed up either!

[rojash]

If you think about it, even if it were possible, you have the directions round the wrong way. If you stand on a large ball and walk in one direction, the ball will rotate in the *opposite* direction.

[mibn2cweus]

. . . not to mention that any reaction to the direction of the motion stated would be opposite in direction to that stated in both examples.

. . . Did I just mention that?

[mibn2cweus]

. . . oops, thought a bit too long about my answer.

[bobb1985]

please note, i wasnt the one that stated this... it was my work colleague, gwilym

[bernardo]

It would speed up, not stop.

[ugly_bob]

so...
tell gwillm no

[bobb1985]

i just didnt want to be the one who had to ask for clarification on this matter. gwilym comes out with a lot of tripe at times.

[naz_nomad]

Lemme guess ... Gwilym's Welsh, right?