I had an idea to build a tall bike which contained a large and heavy wheel in th... | Hacker News

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		mkoryak on Aug 6, 2013 \| parent \| context \| favorite \| on: We still don't really know how bicycles work I had an idea to build a tall bike which contained a large and heavy wheel in the center of the frame, above the 2 wheels but below the rider. This wheel would be made to spin somehow and act as a gyroscope to help the bike stay upright when stopped. This seems to suggest that my plan would never work. If gyroscopes don't stabilize, then why are they used on monorail trains etc?

joshrice on Aug 7, 2013 [–]

> If gyroscopes don't stabilize, then why are they used on monorail trains etc?

They do, it's just the bicycle's wheels aren't heavy enough to provide enough force to really make that much of a difference.

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