81–90 of 119 posts
Decade-scale experiments aren't hard, but they do require planning.
I bet the grad student involved is celebrating now that they can finally submit their thesis
I bet the grad student involved is celebrating now that they can finally submit their thesis
Really, it seems like a dream gig. Just being a student for years and years and continuing to get financial aid to continue your thesis work. I've often said if I could be a student for life I'd be happy. I was just picking the wrong field of study. Viscous fluids, here I come.
In Australia, they give you 3 years (plus an additional 1/2 year extension, which isn't always granted). After that, you're on your own, and many people get a full time job to support themselves.
I've seen quite a few people abandon their PhD because of the need to pay the bills once their funding runs out. It's quite sad.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Really, it seems like a dream gig. Just being a student for years and years and continuing to get financial aid to continue your thesis work. I've often said if I could be a student for life I'd be happy. I was just picking the wrong field of study. Viscous fluids, here I come.
If only it were true. In Australia, they give you 3 years (plus an additional 1/2 year extension, which isn't always granted). After that, you're on your own, and many people get a full time job to support themselves. I've seen quite a few people abandon their PhD because of the need to pay the bills once their funding runs out. It's quite sad.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Chemist here. We use centrifuging to separate components of a suspension by weight. Pitch is a suspension. The heavy stuff would drop to the outside, the viscosity would be affected, no experiment.
> Chemist here. We use centrifuging to separate components of a suspension by weight. Pitch is a suspension. The last bit is puzzling: Are all suspensions fluids? And all fluids are viscous (even non-newtonian)? If so, why do we need an experiment to prove that pitch --a suspension-- is a fluid and is viscous? On the point of using a centrifuge. Is there something particularly special about gravity on earth that does…
Pitch can be proven to be a suspension via distillation. To prove it's a fluid, it must be observed to flow, to form a droplet, and to detach that droplet in the manner of a fluid.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Chemist here. We use centrifuging to separate components of a suspension by weight. Pitch is a suspension. The heavy stuff would drop to the outside, the viscosity would be affected, no experiment.
> Chemist here. We use centrifuging to separate components of a suspension by weight. Pitch is a suspension. The last bit is puzzling: Are all suspensions fluids? And all fluids are viscous (even non-newtonian)? If so, why do we need an experiment to prove that pitch --a suspension-- is a fluid and is viscous? On the point of using a centrifuge. Is there something particularly special about gravity on earth that does…
We could apply some higher acceleration for a shorter time, but that acceleration would have to be highly consistent, and there is no way to shorten the experiment enough to keep that equipment from being unproductive to even contemplate.
Sometimes patience really is the best answer.
The first thought that popped into my punny little brain was: Why didn't they use a centrifuge to accelerate results? The one variable that could be controlled is the gravitational force on the substance. If we were on the moon the experiment, as designed, would take far longer to produce a drop. By using a centrifuge they could have easily simulated significantly greater gravitational forces and arrived at a result…