Warning OT.. Humor Thermodynamic Question........
>
>THERMODYNAMICS OF HELL --A little "levity" for today.
>
> The following is an actual exam 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 most 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
>that event take place, 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.**
Received on Wed Jul 25 2001 - 14:02:16 BST
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