Just what is a pendulum, anyway?

Wolfgang the cat is smarter than Foucault (and Coriolis too). He understands that he is at rest.

He is well aware of the historical context of the Coriolis theory and Foucault's Pendulum. The intelligentsia of the 19th century were smugly certain that there MUST be Earthly evidence to go along with the astronomical evidence of Earth's rotation. Coriolis came up with a space-speed based theory, involving non-verifiable suppostions. Then along came Foucault, who knew a few things about gyroscopes, and thought he was a genius. He discovered that spherical pendulums cannot be made to vibrate in a plane, and twisted that information into his ticket into the statuary hall of sciencedom.

Wolfgang is not deceived about pendulums. They are not magical scientific instruments. They are nothing more than agitated plumb bobs.

He knows that in terms of measuring Earth's rotation, a Foucault's Pendulum is no better than a radio antenna. If you take a long CB car antenna and rig it with a ball- bearing swivel base mount, and put some weight on the tip, you'll have yourself an upside-down Foucault's Pendulum. They're essentially the same machine. Pull it back and let it fly. When the energy is used up the antenna (or bob) will return to its starting position. And it is impossible to make either one "vibrate in a plane". That failure is strictly due to the vagaries of the mechanics involved. It has absolutely nothing to do with Earth's rotation.

Because Earth is a gravitational field. If you are part of that gravitational field you simply go where that field goes. Movements of your mother field are part of your "own" very nature--and therefore do not in any sense represent an acceleration to you.

Wolfgang understands this. When he is at rest, he is at rest. Pressed for a comment about Coriolis and Foucault, he considered long and hard, and then stated, "Pfffffft aaaaaccccckkkkk aaaauuuuugggggghhh!"