• Deconceptualist@leminal.space
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    9 days ago

    I only know jitter as irregularity in data flow (e.g. network packets).

    Jerk is sometimes called jolt though. Both terms seem fitting to me. Supposedly in roller coaster design, having too much jerk/jolt can be quite unpleasant for riders. Which kind of makes sense, if the acceleration varies too wildly I could see that making me sick.

    • RunawayFixer@lemmy.world
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      8 days ago

      I only know jitter from electronics as well, but it could be applied in mechanics as well. Iirc, jitter is the irregularities in the intervals in a periodic signal, like data transfer. But jitter will be present in anything with a period, it doesn’t have to be digital signal. A jerk is a single action, so there is no period and there can be no jitter. A series of jerks could have a seemingly regular period, but when measured more accurately, the intervals between jerks will have small variances: jitter. Hence why imo a series of irregular jerks could be considered jittery.

      Noone ever uses it that way though and I’m not even sure that I phrased it correctly, but because of the word “jerk” I find it a mildly fun play on words.