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From: msj@gitpyr.UUCP (Mike St. Johns)
Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers
Subject: Re: Discrepancies (Dune and Ringworld)
Message-ID: <483@gitpyr.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 19-Jun-85 15:54:27 EDT
Article-I.D.: gitpyr.483
Posted: Wed Jun 19 15:54:27 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 20-Jun-85 02:09:30 EDT
References: <2039@iddic.UUCP>
Reply-To: msj@gitpyr.UUCP (Mike St. Johns)
Distribution: na
Organization: Georgia Institute of Technology
Lines: 27
Summary: 

In article <2039@iddic.UUCP> rick@iddic.UUCP (Rick Coates) writes:
>Here are a couple of discrepancies (one large, one small) that I have
>run across lately:
>
>Dune:
>
>Stillsuits wouldn't work.  As I read it, the idea behind a stillsuit is
>that it allows cooling by evaporation while trapping the moisture. 
>Thermodynamics does not allow this.  Any cooling action gained by the
>evaporation inside the suit would be offset by the condensation process.
>
>The net result would be a steam box that would be hot on a cold day with
>any insolation at all.
>
>

Sorry to disabuse you, but all Thermodynamics says is that you can't get
something for nothing.  If you recall, the description of the stillsuit
includes some form of "pump" which operates as the wearer walks.  This
provides the necessary "work" to circulate fluid.  A refrigerator works well
just by circulating fluid.  I haven't done any calculations, but on the
surface a stillsuit should be feasible.  Mike
-- 
Mike St. Johns
Georgia Insitute of Technology, Atlanta Georgia, 30332
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