On Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:33:02 +0000, Orchid XP v8 wrote:

> Power is nothing without control, 'tis true. But most cars (and animals)
> don't really have much of a problem with traction. The glaringly obvious
> thing about fast animals (including the cheetah) is that they weigh
> approximately nothing. Hell, fast cars tend to have the exact same
> property! Except they're made of metal, which is strong, but quite
> heavy.

True - though many newer cars are lighter than older counterparts, what 
with using machined aluminium, carbon fibre, and other such composites 
(many of which come from the aerospace industry where high strength and 
low weight are absolutely necessary features), there's no doubt they 
still weigh more than the average cheetah. :-)

> Of course, a cheetah can out-accelerate most cars, but has limited top
> speed and severely limited endurance. But then again, if it doesn't kill
> something in 90 seconds or so, the animal it's chasing won't give it
> enough food to be worth continuing the chase anyway.

Yep, and often they'll abandon the chase when it becomes apparent that 
nothing useful comes from it.

> I gather the cheetah is limited primarily by overheating. Then again, it
> leaves in a freakin' desert wilderness, after all...

True. :-)

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