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Double-rod pendulum

I made this double pendulum as a prototype for an exhibit in the 2021 MOD. exhibition called It's Complicated.

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This double pendulum is built from clear acrylic rods, skate bearings, a 365 nm UV LED, and a large glow-in-the-dark vinyl decal on an MDF board.

 

The double-rod pendulum is one of the simplest dynamical systems that demonstrate deterministic chaos. Chaotic systems are:

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  1. Extremely difficult to predict long term; and

  2. Highly sensitive to initial conditions with minor variations in initial positions resulting in large differences in behaviour, often referred to as the butterfly effect.

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Many thanks to Walls That Talk for their excellent and generous assistance!

Process

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