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Jump Around (Extra Credit Blog)

The idea of the entire population of earth possibly jumping all at the same time is feasibly impossible. This idea is not only not practical but would never be carried out successfully, however, when using your imagination, it is an intriguing idea to contemplate. Would a massive force on the earth brought about by over seven billion people actually affect the earth? From the information provided by multiple sources, including business insider as well as a scientific group known as "what if", the impact would result in anything monumental.

According to "what if", the entirety of earth's population, if somehow miraculously transported, would be able to fit in Rhode Island, with some parts of the crowd expanding into Massachusetts and Connecticut. If there were enough coordination through the seven billion people that everyone would be able to jump at the same moment, the result would only be a loud, almost roaring sensation of those fourteen billion feet hitting the ground. This sound would be incomparable to any other sound on earth and would be an estimated two hundred decibels, about fifty decibels louder than a jet engine during takeoff. So if this impact can create such a loud and deafening sound, then shouldn't it also affect the earth in some way? Well, the answer is yes, it does, but not nearly as large as most would believe.
The force exerted on the earth by the landing of over seven billion people would certainly create an impact around those inhabiting the earth, beginning with a tremor type feeling similar to a minor earthquake. This shaking could, in theory, trigger an actual earthquake, resulting in damage to many areas around the world. Of course, this is a large impact, however, when you think of massive repercussions as a result of the entire population jumping, many believe that we would possibly affect earth's orbit throughout the solar system. This is simply untrue and, although there may be many consequences to the massive impact, we would never be able to alter earth's orbit or position in any way. The reason for this is a result of the earth having such a monumental mass that even with the mass of earth's population jumping at one time, we would not be able to disrupt the earth's orbit.

All of these effects are direct results of the jumping theory, however, the subsequent repercussions of the entirety of the population on earth having been gathered in one place would result in devastation in itself. The means of accessible transportation would simply not be sufficient for the mass inundation of people. In one article, it is said that T.F. Green Airport could run at 500% capacity for years and not make a noticeable difference in the crowd of people. The country would soon run out of fuel with most if not all of earth's population is basically trapped in Rhode Island.

In conclusion, no matter how hard we try, the entirety of the population does not have the capability to alter earth's orbit or pathway through space, and I'm not sure why we would want to anyway.


Work Cited
https://what-if.xkcd.com/8/
http://www.businessinsider.com/what-happens-if-everyone-on-earth-jumps-at-the-same-time-2016-6

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