Strain rate

When we talk about "strain rate," we're talking about how quickly or slowly something gets stretched, squished, or bent.

Think of it like taffy: if you pull taffy really slowly, it stretches out into a long, thin strand. But if you pull it really quickly, it might break or snap because it's being stretched too fast.

In the same way, when we talk about strain rate in materials like metal or plastic, we're thinking about how fast they're being deformed, or changed. Materials can handle different levels of strain before they start to change shape or break, and the strain rate can affect that.

So if you're trying to design a car that needs to withstand a lot of force in a crash, for example, you'd want to know what the strain rate is for the metal you're using. That can help you figure out how quickly the metal will deform, and how much force it can handle before it breaks.

So strain rate is just a way of talking about how fast things can be stretched, squished, or bent before they start to break or change shape.