Atwood's machine

noun

At·​wood's machine

ˈat‧ˌwu̇dz-

: an apparatus for demonstrating the laws of accelerated motion by means of a light nearly frictionless pulley wheel over which passes a thread having at its ends fairly heavy masses whose slight difference in weight is the cause of the acceleration

Word History

Etymology

after George Atwood †1807 English mathematician, its inventor

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