Experiments on the motion of turning wheels
Whether a wheel keeps its motion better flat or on edge, and whether spin adds force
The leaf carries only mirror-script writing in red chalk, with no drawing. Under the repeated heading 'Motion' it sets down two experiments: to test which keeps its motion longer, a wheel turning flat on its plane or one turning on edge; and to test whether the impetus of the spinning wheels adds force to whatever drives them. Both notes probe the mechanics of rotation and momentum.
On this page
Rotation, plane versus edge, and gained impetus
The first experiment asks whether a wheel sustains its motion better turning flat on its plane or turning on its edge. The second asks whether the momentum of the spinning wheels supplies extra force to their mover, probing the storing of rotational energy.
Behaviour of driven wheels
Both trials concern wheels as working elements, examining how their orientation and spin affect a mechanism's motion. The notes read as tests to be built and run rather than as theory alone.