The Mystery of the Falling Cat and Fundamental Physics

How do falling cats always manage to land on their four paws? It’s surprising how long it took scientists to answer this question! The history of studying this feline ability is almost as old as physics itself — the first research paper on the subject of the falling cat was published in 1700 by the Frenchman Antoine Parano, but even today scientists continue to find controversial aspects in it. In his fascinating and witty book, physicist and avid cat lover Gregory Gbur shows how attempts to understand the mechanics of falling cats helped to solve a variety of problems in mathematics, physics, physiology, neurology, and space biology, contributed to the development of photography and cinema, and even influenced robotics. The search for an answer to the mystery of the falling cat immerses readers in an exciting world of science, where they not only learn the solution to the puzzle but also discover that the phenomenon of the cat's twist continues to provoke heated debates among scientists. The author is convinced that the more we explore the behavior of these animals, the more surprises they present us with.