The student was wrong. If something absorbs heat, it gets hotter. Things
freeze or cool down as a result of giving up the heat they contain.
Theo
-----Original Message-----
From: Steve Griffing [mailto:bartdog@mindspring.com]
Sent: Thursday, August 24, 2000 2:11 PM
To: alpines@autox.team.net; tigers
Subject: Fw: Thermodynamics of hell.....
I firure the Engineers in the group will appreciate this one. If you have
totally lost your sense of humor, please hit delete now.
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> > 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, lets look at the different religions that exist in the world
> today.
> >
> > Some of these religions state that if you are not a member of their
> > religion, you will go to Hell. Since there are 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. Of course, 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 Ms. Teresa Banyan
> > 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 sexual relations with her,
> > then, #2 cannot be true, and thus I am sure that Hell is exothermic
> > and will not freeze..
> >
> > The student received the only "A" given.
> >
> >
>
> --------- End forwarded message ----------
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