ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Slender-body theory

Imagine a long, thin stick floating in water. When the stick moves, it creates ripples in the water. These ripples are called waves and they move away from the stick in all directions.

Now, imagine a creature swimming through water, like a fish or a whale. This creature is not as thin as the stick, but it is still long and slender. When it moves through the water, it creates waves just like the stick.

Scientists have come up with a theory to help understand how these waves are created and how they affect the creature. This theory is called slender-body theory.

Slender-body theory helps scientists to understand how water moves around a long, thin object as it moves through the water. It takes into account the shape and size of the object, as well as how it moves.

By using this theory, scientists can predict things like how fast the object can move, how much energy is required to move it, and how much drag (resistance) it experiences as it moves through the water.

So, in summary, slender-body theory helps people to understand how long, slender objects move through water and the effects of their movements on the water around them.