Trim tab

Changing the setting of a trim tab adjusts the neutral or resting position of a control surface (such as an elevator or rudder).

Adjusting them up or down alters the pitch attitude of the boat while under way, variously balancing speed, weight distribution, and sea conditions.

[1] Trim tabs are variously integrated into the rudder, elevators, and ailerons of a fixed-wing aircraft.

As such, they are elements of an aircraft's system for allowing the pilot to control and maintain airspeed with a minimum of inputs and mental concentration.

The use of trim tabs significantly reduces pilots' workload during continuous maneuvers (e.g. sustained climb to altitude after takeoff or descent prior to landing), allowing them to focus their attention on other tasks such as traffic avoidance or communication with air traffic control.

For example, propeller aircraft have a tendency to yaw when operating at high power, for instance when climbing; this increases parasitic drag because the craft is not flying straight into the apparent wind.

In other cases, such as engine failure or damage causing asymmetric drag, trim tabs were invaluable for allowing the pilot to fly the aircraft straight without having to apply a constant force on the stick or rudder to keep the aircraft flying straight.

Undertaking high-speed dives or deploying flaps also generally necessitated pitch trim adjustment, as aircraft of the era had different pitch tendencies at different airspeeds, and flaps could change the center of pressure.

Designer Buckminster Fuller is often cited for his use of trim tabs as a metaphor for leadership and personal empowerment.

But if you're doing dynamic things mentally, the fact is that you can just put your foot out like that and the whole big ship of state is going to go.

[6] Fuller's metaphor received considerable media attention in January 2019 when actor Jeff Bridges employed it in his Cecil B. DeMille Award acceptance speech at the 76th Golden Globes: Bucky made the analogy that a trim tab is an example of how the individual is connected to society and how we affect society.