Joao Paulo Carvalho wrote:
>
> A thermodynamics professor had written a take home exam for his
> graduate students. It had one question: Is hell exothermic or
> endothermic? Support your answer with a proof.
>
> Most of the students wrote proofs of their beliefs using Boyle's Law
> or some variant. One student, however wrote the following:
REFUTATION Boyle's Law involves theory of gases.
> First, we postulate that if souls exist, then they must have some
> mass.
REFUTATION Why? Many subatomic entities do not.
If they do, then a mole of souls can also have a mass. So, at
> what rate are souls moving into hell and at what rate are souls leaving?
REFUTATION Depends upon the Gate-keeper
> I think that we can safely assume that once a soul gets to hell, it
> will not leave.
REFUTATION Actually, he'd want to leave the H... of of there.
Therefore, no souls are leaving.
REFUTATION Based on fallacious premise, therefore void.
> As for souls 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 people do not belong to more
> than one religion, we can project that all people and all souls go to
> hell.
REFUTATION None. Seems most logical.
> 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 in volume in hell. Boyle's Law states that in order for the
> temperature and pressure in hell to stay the same, the ratio of the
> mass of souls and volume needs to stay constant.
REFUTATION Boyle's Law stipulates a constant temperature.
> #1 So, 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.
Makes damn good sense!
> #2 Of course, 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.
REFUTATION Now you take into account Charle's Law.
> So which is it? If we accept the postulate given to me by Therese
> Banyan during Freshman year, "that it will be a cold night in hell
> before I sleep with you", and take into account the fact that I still
> have not succeeded in having sexual relations with her, then #2 cannot
> be true, and hell is exothermic.
>
> This student got the only A.
Well deserved although there are more postulates here than in a small
convent!
MM
>
> --
> +----| Joao Paulo de Carvalho |------ +
> | [log in to unmask] |
> +--------| Salvador-Bahia-Brazil |------+
