Biomechanics Quiz

Forces, Levers, Moments, Center of Mass, and Instrumentation in Biomechanics

• Forces acting on the body can cause deformation or injury, such as compression, tension, shear, torsion, bending, and combinations of these forces.
• Musculoskeletal forces include compression, tension, shear, torsion, bending, and combination forces.
• Passive restraints like ligaments and joint capsules, as well as external forces like gravity and physical contact, affect the body's response to forces.
• Levers in biomechanics have three classes, with the order of elements defining the class: Class 1 has the fulcrum in the middle, Class 2 has the resistance in the middle, and Class 3 has the effort in the middle.
• Moments and torque play a crucial role in biomechanics, affecting the difficulty of lifting a force and creating rotary motion at a joint.
• The center of mass (COM) is a theoretical point around which the mass of an object is balanced, and it changes with movement; it is also known as the center of gravity (COG).
• Center of gravity (COG) differs between men and women, with men having a more superior COG due to broader shoulders, and women having a lower COG due to broader hips.
• Angular velocity, the rate of rotation of a body segment, is a characteristic of skilled performance in many sports and can be affected by inertia and body movement.
• Instrumentation such as force transducers and force plates are used to measure and calculate forces, ground reaction forces, and pressure on joints, aiding in biomechanical analysis and clinical applications.
• Pressure, normal stress, pulleys, and ground reaction forces play significant roles in biomechanics, affecting joint protection, movement ease, and skilled performance in sports.
• Ground reaction force (GRF) follows Newton's third law and changes in magnitude, direction, and point of application through the stance phase of ground exertion, affecting gait and stability.
• Biomechanics is a complex field where the understanding of forces, levers, moments, center of mass, and instrumentation is crucial for analyzing human movement and optimizing performance.