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Scientists Make Water Run Uphill

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the flee-little-droplets-flee dept.

redshadow01 writes to mention a BBC story about scientists flouting the laws of physics for fun, and profit. From the article: "The US scientists did the experiment to demonstrate how the random motion of water molecules in hot steam could be channelled into a directed force. But the team, writing in Physical Review Letters, believes the effect may be useful in driving coolants through overheating computer microchips."

14 of 144 comments (clear)

  1. Not flaunting, FLOUTING by mrjeff3000 · · Score: 3, Informative

    http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/flaunt.html ("To flaunt is to show off: you flaunt your new necklace by wearing it to work. "Flout" has a more negative connotation; it means to treat with contempt some rule or standard. The cliché is "to flout convention." Flaunting may be in bad taste because it's ostentatious, but it is not a violation of standards.") (That is all.)

  2. Maxwell's demon? by Toba82 · · Score: 4, Informative

    Has Maxwell's demon been discovered?

    --
    I pretend to know more than I really do by mooching off google and wikipedia.
    1. Re:Maxwell's demon? by pla · · Score: 2, Informative
      Ooh! <A random quasi-interesting topic my highschool teacher mentioned offhand, which has nothing to do with the topic at hand>

      Wow, the slash-trolls have come out in force today!

      Perhaps you would have done better to listen to that "quasi-interesting" topic, then apply the knowledge gained to reading the FP link. Because, strangely enough, it has everything to do with the topic at hand. From the linked article:
      the original intention was to devise an arresting demonstration of how random energy can be rectified into directed motion
      Pretty much the frickin' definition of Maxwell's Demon!


      It may have confused you that in this case, the "demon" has a higher temperature than the surrounding area - But Maxwell only propsed that the source and destination of the molecules have the same temperature, not the demon itself. Somehow I suspect that subtletly lost on you, however, and you had no such semi-legitimate objection in mind, preferring to just act like a complete git in general.
    2. Re:Maxwell's demon? by Anti_Climax · · Score: 2, Informative

      And if you want to see Maxwell's Demon, You can do so here:

      http://www.machall.com/index.php?strip_id=346

      --
      Even people that believe in pre-destiny look both ways before crossing the street.
  3. Usefull in computers? by SmallFurryCreature · · Score: 2, Informative
    It works by having the water hovering on steam. As said in the article the same effect you get when you poor some water on a hot plate.

    Now you only get steam above 100 degrees celcius. Meaning you chip must be literally cooking before this effect sets in.

    A bit too late perhaps?

    Well offcourse you could use liqueds with lower boiling temps but then it wouldn't be water flowing up hill anymore now would it.

    Nice idea but I think I just use a pump rather then waiting for the cooling to set in only after my cpu is glowing red.

    --

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  4. Except it really is flaunting. by artifex2004 · · Score: 1, Informative

    It's conspicuously showing off the ability to exploit physical properties so that they appear to go against the laws, but don't really. I don't think they are showing contempt for the laws, just showing that things aren't as simple as they seem.

  5. Re:This is not flaunting the laws of physics by Aranth+Brainfire · · Score: 1, Informative

    From Dictionary.com:

    Usage Note: Flaunt as a transitive verb means "to exhibit ostentatiously": She flaunted her wealth. To flout is "to show contempt for": She flouted the proprieties. For some time now flaunt has been used in the sense "to show contempt for," even by educated users of English. This usage is still widely seen as erroneous and is best avoided.

    --
    "Quoting yourself is stupid." -Me
  6. Another way to do it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    Whitesides made water run uphill 14 years ago! He used a different "trick" though: he made a surface that was very hydrophobic on one side, and very hydrophilic on the other. A drop of water feels this gradient and moves towards the hydrophilic side, even if it happens to be uphill. The energy comes from the surface tension of the drop (it relaxes as it moves).

    http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1992Sci...256.1539C

  7. Re:British vacuurm cleaner builder did this alread by KylePflug · · Score: 3, Informative

    Except the American version actually flows uphill, and Dyson's version is just an illusion. Thanks for playing, though.

  8. Re:Interesting by It'sYerMam · · Score: 2, Informative

    Ahem. Are you seriously suggesting the creation of a perpetual motion machine?? Something that gives out energy? Hehehe. Besides, if you'd RTFA (yes, I know, this is /.) you'd realise the water has to be pretty hot, in order to give the water molecules enough energy to do this.
    Incidentally, this science is months out of date: http://www.newscientisttech.com/channel/tech/dn861 6.html

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  9. Re:Interesting by joto · · Score: 2, Informative
    How about a self recycling dam? After the water creates energy going down you push it back up and do it again. Maybe even you can get some engery from moving it up. This is all assuming that you gain more energy than you're losing with this method.

    Well, that would work. Except that you also need a heating source that will heat the water vapour to above 200C. You could use solar power for that, but if you already have solar power, solar cells would be more efficient. Heck, if you could consistently heat a large area to above 200C with solar power, it would probably be more efficient to make a steam engine.

    Another possible heat source could be a volcano, but I think that if you want to extract power from the heat difference of a volcano and it's surroundings, you'd find more efficient ways to do it, than making small droplets of water climb upwards and then fall down through a turbine.

  10. Re:WTF.. by Mike+Quin · · Score: 3, Informative

    That was really just an optical trick - the water flowing 'up' the ramp was actually flowing down it, with bubbles underneath the ramp giving the appearance of motion in the other direction.

    see http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3046791.stm

  11. Links with information... by Mike+Peel · · Score: 5, Informative
    Why doesn't the article link to pages with more information that just a summary?


    Incidentally, this news dates from the end of 2005 - so slashdot is running 4/5 months behind the times.
  12. Re:So what by rockwood · · Score: 4, Informative

    There at least 22 other net-documented places that this occurs. Rolling Uphill Illusion . The 'local' location to my residence is Gravity Hill, PA . These locations are well documented and explained in detail. Furthermore the fifth picture from the top shows where the street has been tagged as well as the starting point.

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