Thread: Walking with coffee

I always thought I was just really uncoordinated, but thankfully science is researching the walking with coffee problem.

Phys. Rev. E 85, 046117 (2012) - Walking with coffee: Why does it spill?

I was able to get to the synopsis but not farther than that.
Physics - Science of Slosh

It looks like a really interesting problem in complex systems.

dupe post

The study won an "Ignoble" award, but as far as I know Ignobles are based on actual published studies. Sloshing might have some relevance to more important things, like liquids inside ship containers and tanks. I used to wonder, though, when I was waitressing what the best way to carry a tray with drinks or soups was, if angle mattered or my acceleration or deceleration rate when I was walking.

urn:nbn:no:ntnu:diva-1001: Sloshing in rectangular tanks and interaction with ship motions

I always use my sippy cup so I never spill anything that Is In it.

Use a sippy cup......and I can tip something over on a table.....did it in Italy.....spousy, moi, beer, table chairs.....and ALL I DID WAS START TO POINT AT A PLACE ON THE MAP

Sippy cup used to squirt coffee at my truck windshield every time I hit a bump.
It was what made me quit drinking and driving.

I am an incredibly co-ordinated accident waiting to happen! *laughin*

We used to have a fun event on horseback where each rider was given a cup of beverage to carry while riding their mount at the gaits specified by the ring steward, all horses moving in the ring at once. At the end of the class, the rider with most liquid remaining in their cup was declared the winner.

And you folks are having trouble walking with a cup of coffee?

May I suggest that you try riding lessons?

As I walk with hot cups of coffe a good deal, I think that active neuromuscular control to damp the "slooshing" is necessary. I spill if I'm not paying attention.

I think it helps if you don't have a natural lurch too.

http://www.google.com/aclk?sa=l&ai=C...ariant%3Dblank

The Science Behind Spilled Coffee
The reason that coffee tends to spill out of your cup when you're moving is due to human stride. According to a pair of fluid physicists from UCSB, the stride is almost identical to the frequency that drives the natural oscillations of coffee when inside of a regular-sized coffee cup. The average step facilitates the natural frequency at which coffee sloshes back and forth, causing the the coffee to slosh back and forth.


The spillage that occurs tends to usually happen between your 7th and 10th step (unless you're as talented as myself and spill it on the 1st). Stumbling, changing pace, or sudden movements obviously increase the chances of spillage, which are all characteristics of someone who hasn't had their coffee yet.

Stop Your Sloshing: How to Carry a Hot Cup of Joe Without Spilling Any Coffee on You « Beverages

Hell, I have enough trouble WALKING!!! ahahahahahaa