Daily Archives: January 26, 2011

Spot Welding Has Nothing to Do with Dogs

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Cocktail Party Physics: welding: a matter of life and death.

The arc works on the same principle as spark plugs: electrons build up on the tip of the electrode. Charges of the same type want to be as far as possible from each other, but there’s only so much space on the tip for the charges to sit. When the electrons reach a critical concentration, they are so repulsed by each other that they jump through the air gap to get away from each other. Once in the metal that you’re trying to join, the electrons are free to move around and maximize their distance from each other.

I learned a little about how to arc weld when I was young — my neighbor had a machine, and many odd bits of iron got welded together for practice.

Impossible Songs

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That post about Science on the Simpsons made me think about science in music. More specifically, science that’s wrong in song. This is actual problematic physics, not some mention of fantasy or fiction, in which the rules of science might not apply. Here are a few I can think of off the top of my iPod:

 

Creedence Clearwater Revival, Up Around the Bend

You can ponder perpetual motion

OK, so pondering perpetual motion may not be impossible, but is ultimately fruitless

 

Jefferson Starship, Girl With the Hungry Eyes

I like to move at the speed of light
Albert says I can’t, but I can

 

B-52s, Planet Claire

She drove a Plymouth Satellite
Faster than the speed of light

 

Barenaked Ladies, It’s All Been Done

The whole song is about immortality

 

A Google search shows there are a lot of lyrics using speed of light as a literary device, like “living at the speed of light,” but I don’t think those count. But I did find this one:

Coldplay, Speed of Sound

Look up, I look up at night,
Planets are moving at the speed of light.

 

Feel free to add more in the comments.