Modeling the Motion of a Tossed Ball in an Accelerating Elevator

Photo: Rhett Allain. Two views of a ball tossed in an accelerating elevator.

There is this great elevator in the Hyatt Regency hotel in New Orleans. First, it’s a fairly high acceleration elevator (some of them are just super weak). Second, it’s got a nice glass window on the side. This means you can see outside as you move up floor. But it also means that people can see outside INTO the elevator.