"Eskimos have fridges to stop their food freezing"

[Flatlander]

That's twice I've read that. Can they run in reverse?
Last I heard 'no-one' uses igloos nowadays anyway.

(Let's not go down the Eskimo/Inuit etc. PC route. )

[Uncwilly]

You said "Eskimos"?

[Batalov]

a bit of non-sequitur trivia

Originally Posted by wiki

In French, Russian and Ukrainian the word "Eskimo" (Эскимо/Ескімо) is used as a general name (not a trademark) for any chocolate-covered ice-cream with a wooden stick to handle it.

[davieddy]

...from our resident physics expert

Originally Posted by Flatlander

That's twice I've read that. Can they run in reverse?

Assuming that wasn't another "extraordinary athletic feet(sic)" jest,
the answer is an emphatic yes.
It goes by the grandiose name of the second law of thermodynamics.

David

[davieddy]

Originally Posted by Flatlander

(Let's not go down the Eskimo/Inuit etc. PC route. )

Originally Posted by Uncwilly

You said "Eskimos"?

Eskimo Nell

[Flatlander]

Originally Posted by davieddy

...from our resident physics expert



Assuming that wasn't another "extraordinary athletic feet(sic)" jest,
the answer is an emphatic yes.
It goes by the grandiose name of the second law of thermodynamics.

David

Okay, I must be missing the point. A fridge 'pulls heat from the inside and dumps it at the radiator at the back to encourage spiders and dust'. That's my understanding.

How can that stop food freezing inside if the ambient is < freezing?
Turn the dial up for warmer food and it switches off, not panic and pump heat it.

Second law of thermodynamics = stuff evens out, right? I don't know why wikipedia needs whole paragraphs to explain it. I must get a C+ at least, sir.

Is 'Blubber' woody or tinny?

Thought experiment:
Put a fridge inside a freezer and see what happens to the joghurts. (The spiders die.)

[Flatlander]

What might happen to the lights when a fridge is inside a freezer just blows my mind. Too heavy man.
I'm off to smoke some turps or whatever it is that students do.

(My next topic will be "In the more classy parts of London, do the rioters take their shoes off first?")

[LaurV]

This is not true. Eskimo people do not use the refrigerators to stop their food from freezing. And they don't live in igloos. Most Eskimo live in modern houses like me and you. This story originated in a children "perspicacity" book, I forgot the author and the book name, I saw the book about 40 years ago. One of the "perspicacity problems" was formulated like "how an Eskimo can use his refrigerator to keep his food from freezing?". No, the fridge does not run in reverse, it stills remove the heat from inside. The fridge is in a very well insulated room (igloo?) but the food is not in the fridge (is outside of the fridge, in the room).

[Mr. P-1]

Originally Posted by LaurV

No, the fridge does not run in reverse, it stills remove the heat from inside. The fridge is in a very well insulated room (igloo?) but the food is not in the fridge (is outside of the fridge, in the room).

In the short run, this would indeed warm the room, by cooling the fridge's interior. Over the long run this would be no more efficient than an electric fire. It's also an unstable heating solution, in that it requires the room to be sufficiently warm to cause the fridge to come on. If the room fell below the fridge's operating temperature it would never come on.

In conclusion, Eskimos should not use fridges to stop food from freezing. They should use PCs searching for Mersenne primes instead.

[LaurV]

Originally Posted by Mr. P-1

In conclusion, Eskimos should not use fridges to stop food from freezing. They should use PCs searching for Mersenne primes instead.

That's a good one! 100 points!