[geeks] lawn mowing efficiency

[Dan Sikorski]

On Sun, 2002-04-21 at 17:26, David Cantrell wrote:
> Well, count the characters in each of those.  Same distance covered in each
> one.  However, you should really be concerned not with the least walking
> distance but with expending the least amount of energy.  Doing it in rows
> requires several 180 degree turns, whereas the spiral requires a larger
> number of 90 degree turns.  I imagine that a 90 degree turn requires less
> energy than a 180 degree turn, but that that will at some point be cancelled
> out by the increased number of turns required.  I suggest that you experiment
> by mowing several lawns of different sizes.  Not only will you be advancing
> the boundaries of science, but your neighbours will love you for it too.

Really, you also need to test with some non-orthogonal yards.  That
changes everything.

	-Dan Sikorski