The Daily Feather — Newton’s First Law Applies
Newton's First Law of Motion simply states that “a body in motion will remain in motion…unless acted upon by an outside force.” This universal law applied to the Spring Lake Five Mile Run, which just marked its 45th running this past Saturday. Since its 1977 inaugural, the race has grown from a local fun run into New Jersey’s largest road race and a nationally recognized event. Runner’s World Magazine has dubbed it one of the top 100 races in America. Ask QI’s Dr. Gates how he did, and he’ll tell you that his goal was simply the finish line. He and more than 12,000 runners participated in this event that traditionally kicks off the summer season. Instead of praising the top finishers, Gates would like to give props to the oldest participants. QI takes off its hat to 81-year-old Tony Fiory of Summit, NJ, who won the male 80 and over age group with a time of 58:04.2 and 82-year-old Marilyn Rider of Toms River, NJ, who took first female in the 80 and up bracket with a time of 1:01:30.2.
It's child’s play to apply Newton’s First Law to the U.S. economy. The average postwar expansion is 64 months; the average contraction (read: recession) clocked an average of 10 months. Hone in on the cycles since the 1990 recession and you will see that the average period of growth extended to 107 months, or 1.7 times greater than the average since World War II. The “Great Moderations” facilitated by the Federal Reserve’s twin policies of Quantitative Easing preceded by Zero Interest Rate Policy are on full display.