Scientists Make Water Run Uphill

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."

Comments

M. C. Escher & Dyson.

[Whiney Mac Fanboy]

No discussion of water flowing uphill can go without mention of M.C. Escher's Waterfall and Dyson's fantastic real world recreation (and there's a good explanation of Dyson did it at the BBC.

So Escher was right after all

[John_Renne]

The moment i saw the headline my mind came to Escher, showing us water floating upwards in the painting http://www.petergh.f2s.com/waterfall.jpg Now let's wait for the real life implementation of the ever-rising stairs...

Against the flow

[Mr_Blank]

"Humans are 70%+ water. Most people take the path of least resistance. Some rare people use their humanity to go against the flow." -- Benjamin Bias

Very Impressive, but...

[Ravendon]

This is very impressive. But, I'm more impressed by the Romans having accomplished this a thousand years ago.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aqueduct_(Roman)

Re:Interesting

[drinkypoo]

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.

Yeah, like heating the water, and using it to drive the turbine.

Or around here, pumping the water into the ground, where it is heated, and comes out through the natural geothermal vents, driving a turbine.

I live in Lake County, California, USA, and Calpine (which is rapidly approaching bankruptcy, or just declared it, or something) is selling "The Geysers" to some other company, but lately they've been pumping half-treated sewage into the ground in order to replenish the water that drives the turbines, so they can stay in business...