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Babies on the Brain
BallSox
member
Little Man (4 years old---holy cow)
He's the single greatest thing I've done in my life and reminds me daily of how fun (and funny) life can be. He's turned out pretty swell for having such a heartless and evil mother.
2 daamn degrees (and why snow crunches)
BallSox
member
As we left our friends place tonight, walking through the crunchy snow, I remembered hearing why the snow is louder the colder it gets. Being the science nerd I am, I thought I'd share with you guys.
The audio track
Why does fresh snow squeak and squawk
when you step on it? You're hearing the death throes of ice crystals.
The reason that crystals are only crushed in cold weather stems from the fact that water's freezing point, like its boiling point, changes with pressure. When pressure rises, the boiling point rises and the freezing point drops.
When you walk on snow, your boots apply pressure. If the snow is warmer than about 14 degrees F (-10 degrees C), the pressure partly melts the snow, which "flows" under your boot instead of breaking. If the snow is colder, it does not melt, and your boot crushes those innocent ice crystals, accounting for that plaintive scrunching sound.
Similarly, ice skating and skiing both depend on pressure from the skate or ski, which melts a thin layer of ice or snow, causing a thin, low-friction film of water.
Little Man (4 years old---holy cow)He's the single greatest thing I've done in my life and reminds me daily of how fun (and funny) life can be. He's turned out pretty swell for having such a heartless and evil mother.
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Re: 2 daamn degrees (and why snow crunches)
it's so cold here i can hear the ice crystals creaming instead of crunching
edit :zomg that's supposed to say screaming, but it's too funny to change