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Friday 16 February 2018

More Cold Stuff

Thank you for helping me out with words to describe the ice in my last post. I ended up following a few Google trails to learn more about ice and frost (see here and here) but after trying to read sentences like "The patterns in window frost form a fractal with a fractal dimension greater than one but less than two. This is a consequence of the nucleation process being constrained to unfold in two dimensions, unlike a snowflake which is shaped by a similar process but forms in three dimensions and has a fractal dimension greater than two" mostly what I learned was that I am easily overwhelmed by too much technical information and names and cannot remember any of it long enough to actually write a post on it.

But I did snag a couple of pictures that I liked, which I'll share here:

Hoarfrost crystals (from http://www.its.caltech.edu/~atomic/snowcrystals/frost/frost.htm)




Hard rime on a tree (from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hard_rime)


Soft rime (called soft because it is more fragile than hard rime) (from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soft_rime)


Then there's this, which pretty much blew my mind:

Electron microscope image of Rime ice on both ends of a "capped column" snowflake (from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hard_rime)

THAT IS A SNOWFLAKE, PEOPLE. CAN YOU EVEN BELIEVE IT??

It looks like some kind of heavy duty metal machinery to me.

That's as far as I got into the realm of snow, and I may never go further, as I must now spend an undetermined amount of time recovering from researching ice and frost.

I think some elephant jokes might help my recovery.  And they might amuse you, too.

***
Q.  What does Tarzan say when he sees a herd of elephants in the distance?
A.  "Look! A herd of elephants in the distance!"

Q.  What does Tarzan say when he sees a herd of elephants with sunglasses?
A.  Nothing. He doesn't recognize them.

Q.  What does Tarzan say when he sees a herd of giraffes in the distance?
A.  "Ha ha! You fooled me once with those disguises, but not this time!"

Q.  What is the difference between an elephant and a plum?
A.  An elephant is grey.

Q.  What does Jane say when she sees a herd of elephants in the distance?
A.  "Look! A herd of plums in the distance!" (Jane is colour-blind)

***
These jokes borrowed, with thanks, from http://homepage.eircom.net/~cronews/elep/elep.html
If you want more, just follow that link.

***

Hope you have a good weekend, people!

One final snow-related thought:








Posted by at

40 comments:

  1. River16 February 2018 at 02:02

    I was going to say that snowflake looks like machinery, then I scrolled down a quarter inch and you'd already said it.
    Tarzan not recognising the elephants made me laugh out loud and startled Lola away from her dinner plate.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. jenny_o16 February 2018 at 14:04

      Oh no! We can't have the kitties put off their feed!!

      Delete
  2. Marie Smith16 February 2018 at 08:06

    The description lost me on fractal. Amazing though, especially the snowflake photo, nature’s machinery.

    Loved the jokes!

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    Replies
    1. jenny_o16 February 2018 at 14:05

      Isn't that snowflake peculiar looking up close?!

      Delete
  3. Yorkshire Pudding16 February 2018 at 09:06

    The elephant jokes remind me of a joke I heard when I was at school.
    Q. How many elephants can you get in a Mini?
    A. Four. Two in the front and two in the back.

    P.S. A "Mini" is a small British car.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. jenny_o16 February 2018 at 14:08

      I always wanted a Mini (some people have them here also) but then I considered how well it might hold up in a highway crash. Since we have to use highways to get most anyplace here, I went with "no" . . .

      There is a series of elephants-in-Minis jokes at that link. They're very funny.

      Delete
    2. River17 February 2018 at 02:44

      The full answer is two in the front, two in the back and trunks in the boot. (boot = called a trunk in USA)

      Delete
    3. jenny_o17 February 2018 at 16:19

      Thanks for that addition, River! Funny :)

      Delete
  4. Joanne Noragon16 February 2018 at 10:40

    I'm with the cat.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Steve Reed16 February 2018 at 10:57

    That is a SNOWFLAKE!? I have never seen anything like that in my life. How bizarre!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Jimmy16 February 2018 at 12:35

    Wow that snowflake picture looks like anything but a snowflake...impressive!

    ReplyDelete
  7. 37paddington16 February 2018 at 14:58

    I kept looking at that snowflake picture unable to quite believe it's really a snowflake. You may just have sent me down the snowflake rabbit hole...

    ReplyDelete
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    1. jenny_o16 February 2018 at 15:10

      I know! I'm going to have to go down that hole myself just as soon as I forget how frustrating it was reading about fractals :D

      Delete
  8. only slightly confused16 February 2018 at 17:10

    I'm with the kitty....when is this misery going to be over?

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    Replies
    1. jenny_o16 February 2018 at 22:55

      In 32 days it's going to say Spring on the calendar, Delores. As to what you're REALLY WONDERING, your guess is as good as mine!

      Delete
  9. kylie16 February 2018 at 18:00

    I have never heard of rime before, either hard or soft and hoar frost might have crossed my awareness once before. You can tell we don't have snow or frost here!

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    Replies
    1. jenny_o16 February 2018 at 22:56

      I bet you have a hundred different ways to describe the heat, though!

      Delete
  10. dinthebeast16 February 2018 at 18:06

    The only thing I know about fractals is the Mandelbrot set, and the only thing I know about that is the animation that looks like it is diving further and further into the pattern, which just keeps on repeating over and over.
    Interesting pictures. Briana and I just had a discussion about the words "hoar" and "rime" after seeing them, so now we know more things than we did a few minutes ago...

    -Doug in Oakland

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. jenny_o16 February 2018 at 22:57

      And so do I, or at least I will after I look up the animation for the Mandelbrot set :D

      Delete
  11. Geo.16 February 2018 at 20:10

    That snowflake electromicrograph is amazing. The thing is growing, seeking ever-expanding layers of organization --which is also a good description of thinking. A mind is at work.

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    1. jenny_o16 February 2018 at 22:58

      It's quite awe-inspiring, isn't it, Geo.? Very ordered and based on certain rules. Doesn't exactly seem random, does it?

      Delete
  12. Mr. Shife16 February 2018 at 21:40

    Winter has returned to Idaho and I'm not happy about it. Really ready for it to be over. Thanks for the Tarzan jokes. The first one made me LOL. Take care, jenny_o.

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    Replies
    1. jenny_o16 February 2018 at 22:59

      Always glad to cause LOLs, Mr. S! Hang on, spring will be here soon!

      Delete
  13. Martha16 February 2018 at 22:56

    HAHA! The elephant jokes :) That snowflake is really amazing! It's hard to believe it's even a snowflake. My favourite part of winter is indeed when it's over!

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    1. jenny_o16 February 2018 at 23:02

      I thought of you when I picked that last picture, Martha; I know you've been itching for the cold and snow to be on its way.

      Isn't that snowflake strange? I suppose if someone put me under an electron microscope they might see some weird stuff, too :)

      Delete
  14. Terry17 February 2018 at 07:31

    It’s much too early for me to make any sense of that. 🤔 😬 Easter is on the way.
    .

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    1. jenny_o17 February 2018 at 16:17

      It sure is, Terry. The end of March, which isn't too far away now.

      Delete
  15. DB Stewart17 February 2018 at 15:51

    I too am AMAZED by snow, yet I don't miss it during the summer either.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. jenny_o17 February 2018 at 16:18

      I think it falls into that category "can live with it, can live without it" :)

      Delete
  16. Diane Henders18 February 2018 at 14:33

    Wow, that electron microscope photo is amazing! I agree - it looks like some dystopian future-world machinery. Now, since we got another six inches of snow last night (sigh), I'll be imagining all the trillions of little machines out there weighing down our trees...

    Poor snow-kitty. I know how s/he feels!

    ReplyDelete
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    1. jenny_o18 February 2018 at 18:26

      It kinda makes a person think, doesn't it?

      Here's another thing I think about snow: I think you folks have gotten more this winter than we have. Our winter has been very "open" - very little snow and none of it has stayed. That's just not right, is it??

      Delete
    2. Diane Henders19 February 2018 at 01:27

      I think we singlehandedly caused climate change when we moved to Vancouver Island - last winter was the coldest and snowiest on record; and I think this year has been even snowier. It's a miracle the locals haven't rounded us up and forcibly shoved us onto a ferry. (Or under one.)

      Delete
    3. jenny_o19 February 2018 at 02:02

      Don't let your guard down! Or else always travel with cookies :)

      Delete
  17. baili21 February 2018 at 03:29

    the definition of snowflakes pattern is quite weirdly tough to understand for me either.

    Magical images ,first one looks like snowy bloom ,second is absorbing and in third i see the white unicorn.

    enjoyed the jokes as well particularly last two made me smile

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    1. jenny_o21 February 2018 at 15:52

      You are right about the snowy bloom and the white unicorn - I never thought of them that way!

      Glad to make you smile :)

      Delete
  18. Chicken21 February 2018 at 21:43

    Wow, who knew snowflakes were so industrial. I'm pretty sure even Tarzan and Jane, with their astute powers of observation, wouldn't have known that...and the soft rime is beautiful

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    Replies
    1. jenny_o22 February 2018 at 14:52

      Industrial is the perfect word! I'll never think of snow in the same way I used to.

      Delete

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