Gives you more time to recoup lost energy, but the total energy expended is the same. Some of us that were "in shape" would prefer the straighter line approach because it was faster. (Hiked Camelback mountain, Phoenix area, for years, and also South mountain.) If you're not in shape, the zig zag is the ONLY way you'll survive getting to the top. The kids (around 6 to 12), for some inexplicable reason, would "run" past you on the way up, leaving you in their dust, while you questioned your definition of "in shape." "The steeper the slope, the more important it is that you tackle it at the right angle."That's quite right. If a slope's steepness (i.e. height divided by stretch of climbing way, which is the sine of the gradient angle) equals 100% (and the slope is topographically homogeneous), you should scale it vertically. Then the angles of the zigzag course amount 0 degrees. Question and task: What about "the right angles" at which to tackle slopes with a steepness of 99%, 90%, 70.71%, 50%, 10%? Assume that the overall weight which has to be transported from A at the elevation bottom to B at the elevation top, doesn't any matter for the "right angle". Set up the equation for ... good news! yet another vital proof to: "There are no straight lines in Nature" ...................................  Ski-lift. Problem solved.  Why aren't stairs zig-zag? |
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