For many years I have made some money from people at parties and other gatherings who thought that they could catch a dollar bill with two fingers as I dropped it through them. As long as George’s face is facing one of the two fingers of the hand of the target and the bill is released so slowly that neither party knows when it will fall, it apparently is impossible to catch. I have understood the mechanical part but not the physiological part. Why can’t anyone catch the bill when it falls through their fingers? Does it have to do with the distance and time the bill travels between the fingers and reaction time or what?
I tried it and managed to catch the bill on my 3rd attempt.
s = 1/2 * at[sup]2[/sup]. For 8.5 cm (about half the length of a dollar bill), I get 0.13 seconds; the typical human reaction time is 0.2 seconds.
I think that answers it.
You say you do this at parties? I’d say alcohol consumption is more likely a factor in affecting people’s ability to catch the dollar bill. Were these people sober when you tried this trick on them?
Yes they were sober or at least realively so. You cannot do it to your self but if the bill is held by a corner at the top of the bill and slowly released I don’t believe there is anyone who can catch it. The bill must be held by a corner, sorry I did not mention that in the OP. Still, Georges picture must be facing one of the targets fingers. The object is to release the bill as slowly as possible so that the dropper and the target do not really know when the bill is going to fall. The bet is that each time the target catches the bill he can keep it, but if he cannot catch it he/she owes you a dollar. OK
The reaction time answer seem right on. It has nothing to do with the direction the bill is facing. Holding it from the middle, rather than the edge, would be even harder as it would pass throught the waiting fingers more quickly.
People aren’t a good judge of reaction time. Take a look at top fuel drag racers and how quickly they get off the line when the light turns green. I imagine they have exercises and drills that help them improve their reaction times, but it ends up being nerve impulses one way or the other.
We (my old boss and I) tried this with women through the bars of Asia on bidness trips (always giving them the money at the end anyway), and met one young lady in Bangkok who caught it all the time. Apparently it is a child’s game in the town she was from, and with enough practice it can be done with ease.
Well, UncleBill, if that’s true, then to have your kid be a great dragster racer, you should play red light - green light with them when they are kids…
I just went around the office and collected some data, uncle Cecil would be proud. Of the five guys tested, using a 12 inch ruler, the average grab was at 8.0 inches. A bill measured 6.0 inches. One guy got consistent grabs at 7.25 inches, but even when I used a $20.00 bill no one could grab it.
One fun thing to do is let go of the ruler real quick, before the other person is ready, and watch their reaction as the ruler hits the ground.
Thanks for the entertainment. We’ll be talking about this for weeks! (not)
-Sandwriter
I’ve played this game with people who were guaranteed stone cold sober and I haven’t lost money yet. That’s not to say that some folks haven’t caught the bill, but most can’t do it. I don’t let 'em try ten or twelve times, though.
For what it’s worth, I can’t catch the bill when someone else drops it.
How far down are they allowed to have their hand? Does the catcher need to have their arms at their sides? Do they need to be standing up?
IIRC, they react to the yellow lights, not the green. The green comes on .4s after the yellows.
Dignan, I had people lay their hand off the edge of a table so they couldn’t extend the time and bring their hand down. With their thumb and forefinger extended, I had them close their thumb and forefinger and I would rest the bottom edge of the bill on the union. Then have them open their thumb and forefinger and slowly release the bill.
So they had their hand and the bottom of the bill, no farther.
There arm was not at their sides.
The person can be sitting down or standing up.
HTH,
Sandwriter
To finish this problem: if t = 0.2 seconds, then s = 20 cm = 8 inches.
By Sandwriter:
Kinda all fits together, eh?
What on earth makes you think it is not true?
The MO for us. Hold the bill between the thumb and forefinger at one edge (short side). Other person (target) places thumb and forefinger on either face of the bill, at it’s midpoint. Slightly shaking the hand holding the bill helps distract them. Then release the bill, and the target has 1/2 the length of the bill to react. The target moving their hand down after the release did not count.
My fifth grade teacher was talking about this in class one day and had everybody come up and make one try with a $5 bill. If you caught it, you could keep it.
I caught it. He didn’t let me keep it.
I would guess it was just luck. I anticipated when he would release it and was right. If there is someone who can catch the bill off you consistently, I would guess there is some tell involved.