This table includes discussion summaries and lecture notes for the first 6 sessions. From session #7 on, class discussion focused on individual student projects.
| SES # | SUMMARY | NOTES |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Introduction Discussion: Might the natural frequencies of karabiner gates and ropes match under certain circumstances that would cause the karabiner gate to be open during fall arrest? | Summary of In-class Derivation (PDF) |
| 2 | Open Questions in Rock Climbing | Presentation (PDF) |
| 3 | Discussion of karabiner-rope Coupling | Summary of Discussion (PDF) |
| 4 | Rope Behavior | Presentation (PDF) |
| 5 | Three student projects defined: - Measurement of karabiner gate opening due to oscillation, both in-vitro (say glued to a speaker cone) and in-vivo (in a drop test). - Modeling of the frequency matching between rope and karabiner gate oscillation. - Rope middle marking. | |
| 6 | Measured the frequency of rope oscillation. Measured the spring constant of a karabiner and came up with an estimate for the oscillation frequency of the gate (~25 Hz). Marked nylon and tried to see if any changes were observable under a light microscope ~100x magnification. No changes were readily apparent. | Rope Oscillation Experiment (PDF) |