question: How are wooden bows so flexible without breaking while the same type of wood used to make a table (for example) would break if you flexed it that far?
comment: I don’t know if they make tables out of yew, but the geometry makes a difference. A table is a slab designed not to bend, but to hold up a load. A bow is tapered towards the ends so the flex is distributed in a way the wood can support. Many bows are laminated to increase this ability.
passages: Limbs are made of fiberglass-based composite materials and are capable of taking high tensile and compressive forces. The limbs store all the energy of the bow – no energy is stored in the pulleys and cables. Draw weights of adult compound bows generally fall between 40 and 80 pounds, enabling arrow speeds of 250 to 370 feet per second.
   Traditional materials include linen, hemp, other vegetable fibers, sinew, silk, and rawhide. Almost any fiber may be used in emergency. Natural fibers would be very unusual on a modern recurve bow or compound bow, but are still effective and still used on traditional wooden or composite bows. Sinew and hide strings may be seriously affected by water.
  
  Widely used modern materials are stronger for their weight than any natural material, and most are unaffected by water. They include:
   The overall length of bending wood must be about 2.3 times the draw length. Narrow bows (known as "longbows") can bend in the handle. Wider bows (known as "flatbows") must be narrow in the handle if they are to be practical, but the handle must be made thicker so as not to bend, and the complete bow will therefore tend to be longer.
  
  Self bows may be of any side-view profile; moderate recurving can often be achieved with heat and force.
  
  Section::::See also.
  
  BULLET::::- Crossbow
  
  BULLET::::- Cable-backed bow
  
  BULLET::::- Compound bow
  
  BULLET::::- Laminated bow
  
  Section::::Further reading.
   The materials must withstand these stresses, store the energy, and rapidly give back that energy efficiently. The amount of energy stored is determined by the stresses withstood and the shape of the limb, from the unstrung position to strung (consider as pre-stressed), then de-formed further to full draw as the recurve unwinds. These basic principles of changing mechanical advantage, to efficiently store more energy, and deliver it to accelerate the arrow, were clearly understood in antiquity, as shown by the examples that follow.
  
  Section::::Straight bows.
   In bows drawn and held by hand, the maximum draw weight is determined by the strength of the archer. The maximum distance the string could be displaced and thus the longest arrow that could be loosed from it, a bow's draw length, is determined by the size of the archer.
   Many bows, especially traditional self bows, are made approximately straight in side-view profile. They are generally referred to as straight, despite the minor curves of natural wood and the "set" or curvature that a wooden bow takes after use. When the archer commences the draw, mechanical advantage is at its greatest and the bow limbs are only pre-stressed to the strung position; therefore drawing weight is at a minimum. However, the drawing weight rapidly increases because mechanical advantage reduces (consider the string is pulling more and more directly on the limbs) and stresses are building up in the limbs. Consequently, drawing weight 'stacks' (very rapidly increases). On release, the reverse happens, the arrow is accelerated by maximum force, and this force rapidly decreases. Hence, the arrow must be sturdy enough to withstand such acceleration and, as the string may decelerate, it is possible for the arrow to leave the string prematurely, which is inefficient.
   The wood of the bending part of the limb (""dustar"") must endure intense shearing stress, and denser woods such as hard maples are normally used in Turkish bows. Bamboo, and wood of the mulberry family, are traditional in China. Some composite bows have nonbending tips (""siyahs""), which need to be stiff and light; they may be made of woods such as Sitka spruce.
   For many years the excellence of Turkish bows could be seen from historical records. In 1910 an archery contest was held on the beach at Le Touquet, France, where Ingo Simon was able to shoot an arrow 434 m using an old Turkish composite bow requiring a force of 440N or 99 lb.
  
  Section::::Equipment.
  
  Section::::Equipment.:Turkish Bow.
   Any wooden bow must have gentle treatment and be protected from excessive damp or dryness. Wooden bows may shoot as well as fiberglass, but they are more easily dented or broken by abuse. Bows made of modern materials can be left strung for longer than wood bows, which may take a large amount of set if not unstrung immediately after use.
  
  Section::::Legacy.
   The density of timber correlates well with its ability to store energy as it is bent. Denser timbers can make narrower bows. The same design for less dense timbers results in the bow taking excessive set-string follow, or even breaking. However, equally effective bows may be made from less dense timber by making them wider near the centre. The mass of equivalent bows is closely similar whatever the density of wood; approximately the same mass of wood is required whatever the density of the timber.
   Bowstrings have been constructed of many materials throughout history, including fibres such as flax, silk, and hemp. Other materials used were animal guts, animal sinews, and rawhide. Modern fibres such as Dacron or Kevlar are now used in commercial bowstring construction, as well as steel wires in some compound bows. Compound bows have a mechanical system of pulley cams over which the bowstring is wound. Nylon is useful only in emergency situations, as it stretches too much.
  
  Section::::Types of bow.
   In many parts of the world including much of Africa, the Americas, northern Europe, and Southern Asia, the great majority of traditional bows are self bows. The first bow artifacts, the Stellmoor and Holmegaard artifacts of Northern Europe, are self bows. The Stellmoor bow was made from the heartwood of a Scots pine while the oldest Holmegaard bows were carved from small-diameter elms. In primitive flight archery competitions, bows inspired by the design of the Holmegaard bows perform very well because of their light, non-bending tips.
  
  Section::::Selecting wood.
   Section::::Construction.:Bow.
  
  Chinese crossbow bows were made of composite material from the start.
  
  European crossbows from the 10th to 12th centuries used wood for the bow, also called the "prod" or "lath", which tended to be ash or yew.
  
  Composite bows started appearing in Europe during the 13th century and could be made from layers of different material, often wood, horn, and sinew glued together and bound with animal tendon. These composite bows made of several layers are much stronger and more efficient in releasing energy than simple wooden bows.
   While there is great variety in the construction details of bows (both historic and modern), all bows consist of a string attached to elastic limbs that store mechanical energy imparted by the user drawing the string. Bows may be broadly split into two categories: those drawn by pulling the string directly and those that use a mechanism to pull the string.
   In modern form, the archer stands erect, forming a "T". The archer's lower trapezius muscles are used to pull the arrow to the anchor point. Some modern recurve bows are equipped with a mechanical device, called a clicker, which produces a clicking sound when the archer reaches the correct draw length. In contrast, traditional English Longbow shooters step "into the bow", exerting force with both the bow arm and the string hand arm simultaneously, especially when using bows having draw weights from 100 lbs to over 175 lbs. Heavily stacked traditional bows (recurves, long bows, and the like) are released immediately upon reaching full draw at maximum weight, whereas compound bows reach their maximum weight around the last inch and a half, dropping holding weight significantly at full draw. Compound bows are often held at full draw for a short time to achieve maximum accuracy.
   The first surviving treatise on composite bow construction and archery was written in Arabic under Mamluk rule about 1368. Fragments of bone laths from composite bows were found among grave goods in the United Arab Emirates dating from the period between 100BC-150AD.
  
  Section::::Post-classical development.:Integral wooden siyahs.
  
  Later developments in the composite bow included siyahs made of separate pieces of wood, attached with a V-splice to the wooden core of the bow, rather than strengthened by external reinforcement. Mediaeval and modern bows generally have integral wooden siyahs and lack stiffening laths.
  
  Section::::Post-classical development.:String bridges.
   Flexible trees may be a compromise between the two camps, but manufacturing quality and design varies greatly. While flexible, adjustable trees are an alternate choice to traditional wooden trees, they carry limitations inherent in both solid tree and treeless designs.
   In the most common configuration, there is a cam or wheel at the end of each limb. The shape of the cam may vary somewhat between different bow designs. There are several different concepts of using the cams to store energy in the limbs, and these all fall under a category called bow eccentrics. The four most common types of bow eccentrics are Single Cam, Hybrid Cam, Dual Cam and Binary Cam. However, there are also other less common designs, like the Quad Cam and Hinged. Cams are often described using their "let-off" rating. As a cam is rotated, the force required to hold the bow in position reaches a peak and then decreases as the bow approaches maximum extension (a position known as "the wall"). The percent-difference between the maximum force encountered during the draw and the force required to hold the bow in full extension is the "let-off". This value is commonly between 65% and 80% of the peak weight for recently designed compound bows, although some older compound bows provided a let-off of only 50% and some recent designs achieve let-offs in excess of 90%.
   The main purpose of a nock is to control the rotation of the arrow. Arrows bend when released. If the bend hits the bowstave, the arrow's aim will be thrown off. Wooden arrows have a preferred bending-plane. Synthetic arrows have a designed bending plane. Usually this plane is determined by the grain of the wood of the arrow, or the structure of a synthetic arrow. The nock's slot should be rotated at an angle chosen so that when the arrow bends, it avoids or slides on the bowstave. Almost always this means that the slot of the nock must be perpendicular to the wood's grain, viewed from behind.
   "Self nocks" are slots cut in the back of the arrow. These are simple, but can break at the base of the slot. Self nocks are often reinforced with glued servings of fiber near the base of the slot. The sturdiest nocks are separate pieces made from wood, plastic, or horn that are then attached to the end of the arrow.
  
  Modern nocks, and traditional Turkish nocks, are often constructed so as to curve around the string or even pinch it slightly, so that the arrow is unlikely to slip off.
   The stiffness of the shaft is known as its "spine", referring to how little the shaft bends when compressed, hence an arrow which bends less is said to have more spine. In order to strike consistently, a group of arrows must be similarly spined. "Center-shot" bows, in which the arrow passes through the central vertical axis of the bow riser, may obtain consistent results from arrows with a wide range of spines. However, most traditional bows are not center-shot and the arrow has to deflect around the handle in the archer's paradox; such bows tend to give most consistent results with a narrower range of arrow spine that allows the arrow to deflect correctly around the bow. Bows with higher draw weight will generally require stiffer arrows, with more spine (less flexibility) to give the correct amount of flex when shot.
   Bows are usually very simple. Most do not have sights, and aiming is by line-of-sight judgment down the arrow. There are a couple of types of rests including the hook and roller rest. Most bows have little to no let-off and not much draw weight. This differs with what one has available and personal preference. There are two main types of bows. Traditional bows include long bows and recurve bows. In more modern times, compound bows came into use. They use a system of pulleys to help the archer. Modern bows can have as much as 120 pounds (50 kg) draw weight.
   At the weights more usual for modern amateurs, the greater density of horn and sinew compared to wood usually cancels any advantage of composite construction. For most practical non-mounted archery purposes, self bows can perform as well as composite; "the initial velocity is about the same for all types of bow... within certain limits"
  
  Section::::History.
   Medieval Europeans favoured self bows as hand bows, but they made composite prods for crossbows. The prods were usually well protected from rain and humidity which are prevalent in parts of Europe. Ancient European civilizations such as the Cretans, Romans, and others who were influenced by Eastern Archery preferred composite recurve bows.
   Section::::Use and summary.
  
  Consider the bow as being potentially on a pivot at the pressure point of the bow-hand. If the archer applies inadvertent pressure off centre of the pressure point, then inadvertent movement of the bow will result, with loss of precision. By careful study of the bow's movement, the appropriate positioning and addition of weight(s) may be tried, to reduce errors, although prevention is better than cure.
  
presuppositions: Wooded bows and tables are made from the same wood. Wooden bows should break since a table made of the same wood would break if flexed too far.
corrections: Wooden bows and tables may not be made by the same wood.  A bow is designed to bend, whereas a table is not. 
raw_presuppositions: Wooded bows and tables are made from the same wood. Wooden bows should break since a table made of the same wood would break if flexed too far. Wood bows should break since a table made of the same wood would nreak if flexed too far.
raw_corrections: Wooden bows and tables may not be made by the same wood.  A bow is designed to bend, whereas a table is not.  A bow is designed to bend.