Further Explanation
Imagine a beam is suspended from a wire by a U-bolt so that it can move freely along the wire. A blow to the beam below the center of gravity will cause the beam to rotate around the CoG (center of gravity) and also cause the CoG to move away from the blow. If the blow falls above the CP (center of percussion) the movement of the CoG will cause the U-bolt to move away from the blow since the effect of the translational acceleration will outweigh the effect of the rotational acceleration. If the blow falls below the CP the opposite will occur, rotational acceleration will outweigh translational acceleration and the U-bolt will move towards the blow. Only if the blow falls exactly on the CP will the two cancel out to produce no net movement of the U-bolt.
Read more about this topic: Center Of Percussion
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