From: Fred Stein (fred@exploratorium.edu)
Date: Mon Feb 09 2004 - 13:00:04 PST
Message-Id: <l03110708bc4da3c0952a@[192.174.3.140]> Date: Mon, 9 Feb 2004 13:00:04 -0800 From: Fred Stein <fred@exploratorium.edu> Subject: exothrmic vs endothermic?
Hi Pinholers,
Not a serious question -- just an amusing anecdote:
The following is an actual question given on a University of Washington
chemistry mid-term. The answer by one student was so "profound" that the
professor shared it with colleagues, via the Internet, which is, of course,
why we now have the pleasure of enjoying it as well.
Bonus Question: Is Hell exothermic (gives off heat) or endothermic
(absorbs heat)?
Most of the students wrote proofs of their beliefs using Boyle's Law (gas
cools off when it expands and heats up when it is compressed) or some
variant.
One student, however, wrote the following:
"First, we need to know how the mass of Hell is changing in time. So we
need to know the rate that souls are moving into Hell and the rate they are
leaving. I think that we can safely assume that once a soul gets to Hell,
it will not leave. Therefore, no souls are leaving.
As for how many souls are entering Hell, Let's look at the different
religions that exist in the world today. Most of these religions state
that if you are not a member of their religion, you will go to Hell.
Since there is more than one of these religions and since people do not
belong to more than one religion, we can project that all souls go to Hell.
With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the number of souls
in Hell to increase exponentially. Now, we look at the rate of change of
the volume in Hell because Boyle's Law states that in order for the
temperature and pressure in Hell to stay the same, the volume of Hell has
to expand proportionately as souls are added.
This gives two possibilities:
1) If Hell is expanding at a slower rate than the rate at which souls
enter Hell, then the temperature and pressure in Hell will increase until
all Hell breaks loose.
2) If Hell is expanding at a rate faster than the increase of souls in
Hell, then the temperature and pressure will drop until Hell freezes over.
So which is it?
If we accept the postulate given to me by Teresa during my Freshman year,
"....that it will be a cold day in Hell before I sleep with you", and take
into account the fact that I still have not succeeded in having an affair
with her, then #2 above cannot be true, and thus I am sure that Hell is
exothermic and will not freeze over."
THIS STUDENT RECEIVED THE ONLY "A"
Fred Stein
Science Educator
Exploratorium Institute for Inquiry
3601 Lyon St.
San Francisco, CA 94123
(415) 561-0332
fred@exploratorium.edu
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