imp

Does anyone know a bit about making tennis balls? The process once was very labor-intensive, involving many separate operations. Has it been mechanized/automated to any reasonable degree, I wonder? Are figures available for total tennis ball production world-wide? imp

As a kid with a chemistry set, I discovered that sodium nitrite and sulfur when mixed are easily ignited to burn with a beautiful yellowish-orange color. imp

Why is isopropyl alcohol so widely sold and used rather than propyl alcohol? It would seem to me that the isomeric form would be more difficult to make, and therefore more costly. Or, is the common drug store stuff actually a mixture of the two? Of course, the ingredients listing would not reveal that. imp

My Chemistry text claims SO3 is mixed with water to make H2SO4. I sort of questioned that in my mind, so posted this. (The text: General Chemistry, by March & Windwer). I wondered if there were truth in this, why would the commercial processes used to produce H2SO4, as involved as they are, be used at all? I thank you for your input! imp

What I would like is to have a B.P. of about 300C. imp

Your post suggests you like firearms; that's good! And, that's about all I've figured out regarding what you're saying. Materials are thought to consist of a structure typically called a crystal lattice. The lattice's actual configuration depends on many things; if metal, it is closely packed and does not allow much shifting around of molecules (or atoms), so if you are asking about a means of fending off a bullet by some unusual theoretical method, I doubt that I can be of much help. Armor-piercing rounds typically have a very hard material up front, capable of entering the structure of metal cladding without disintegrating or deforming excessively. Even more effective is the "shaped charge", which explosively drives a very hard auxiliary projectile forward and is capable of penetrating many inches or armor plate. Has this helped? imp

as I confess to be, what is meant by "OP"? Thank you for accepting my incompetence! imp

What is an acceptable procedure to use SO3 to make Sulfuric Acid? What proportions would result in reasonably concentrated acid? imp

Which one person stood to gain the most from JFK's death? imp

A few examples of Engineering dilemmas: The first Boeing 747 airplanes NEEDED 2, as I recall, hydraulic pumps to adequately power control surfaces, etc., of a given horsepower- therefore the Engineering decision was to provide each aircraft with 5! A piece of production equipment I designed for use in my company calculated out to need a 1.3 horsepower drive motor. I specified 5 hp, despite additional cost. The motor was still "loafing" along after running over ten years. I could not have done it that way, if we were attempting to sell the machine. The plant built in Henderson, Nevada in the 1940's to make magnesium for use in aircraft was ENTIRELY fitted with only 3-phase electric motors, down to fractional horsepower for small fans. Someone did not like single-phase motors, at all! Our plant in Indiana was required to curtail all use of natural gas in winter; 2 propane tanks of 30,000 gallon capacity provided the substitute energy. As the Facilities Engineer, I was faced with a real problem when a sudden cold snap dropped temperatures low enough to begine freezing the liquid propane leaving the tanks. I learned that gas suppliers routinely blend BUTANE with the propane, as it was then cheaper (the customer usually was unaware of this practice). Butane freezes at a higher temperature than propane. The recommended fix? Install a "propane heater" which burned propane in order to allow delivery into the plant. I refused to authorize it, and instead convinced the natural gas supplier to allow emergency use when the temperature threatened to close down operations. An interesting game, Engineering! imp

If the literature is correct, following Tesla's death, agents of the government seized his notes and records; supposedly, advised by some top minds, they feared truth in his development of uses for aggressive activity, like "death rays", etc. Those records have never been released (or found). (supposedly). imp

Personally, I appreciate your approach, but recall all too well that being discouraged by the wiser aged usually resulted in my being ENcouraged! Ah, the curiosity of youth! imp

Hey, all, Texas City, Texas nearly disappeared when a large quantity of this type of fertilizer decided not to be fertilizer anymore! Prilled product notwithstanding! (much harder to initiate). imp

Use caution with KClO3 if any sulfur or sulfur-containing material is present. I spent many months healing from 2nd. degree burns sustained while triturating them together in a mortar & pestle. imp

This troubled me too, for a long time. So, simply imagine that all matter, whether solid, liquid, or gas, is evaporating, some slowly, some rapidly. Mercury metal, for example, evaporates slowly at room temperature; this is one reason why open mercury barometers have all but disappeared. I've seen a photograph of the mercury vapor "cloud" above a pool of mercury. Gasoline exhibits a practical example of vapor pressure which makes it's presence noticed. A warmed can opened produces an audible "whoosh", as the higher pressure inside propels the gaseous product outward. "Volatile" is a rather qualitative term; it depends a lot on temperature, which in turn determines the vapor pressure. imp

Well, then let's see you utilize the rf energy present at all times in your home to power all it's electrically operated conveniences! (just being a little sarcastic, I see your point). imp

So, very energetic ionizing radiation, like mev+, can bring about secondary emission, which may be particulate OR gamma? Therefore, detonation of a nuclear bomb is likely to render surrounding objects which survive the heat blast secondarily radioactive? I can understand that electron movement from one shell to another may cause emission of photons, but never thought that to be other than visible light, ala the laser. imp

The engineer who designs things often is responsible for choosing, specifying, purchasing, and using many types of often complex devices which may be designed and built by others. Therefore, he or she must also be something of a fortune-teller to predict suitability of others' products from a standpoint of life- that is, others' product might cause premature failure of the engineer's end product. Often, experience and guts will be all-important. If the engineer works for a company which sells the things he designs, cost-consciousness is the prevalent theme. Unfortunately, cheapness designs-in early failure. On the other hand, if the engineer designs things for USE by his/her own company, assuming no undue cost restraints, he or she can come up with things which last almost forever. The "bottom line" of the thread is: How do you believe airplane builders are able to design and produce, competitively, products which are as safe as we know them to be, when automotive builders, for example, competitively build products which are far less inherently unsafe than airplanes? imp

I should think the heart rate is related to ANTICIPATED eating, like eagerness to eat wonderful things because of the emotional ties (adrenalin rush). It must also be a function of HOW MUCH is eaten, as well as physical activity after eating- a huge meal might require much-increased blood flow to the digestive organs, hence, a higher heart rate. Another factor might be whether you are doing your eating alone, or in the presence of someone very moving to you.............imp

For a long time, I have wondered about the following condition, mentioned in textbooks and elsewhere, but never fully explained (at least not to my satisfcation). Objects exposed to ionizing radiation, such as x-rays, gamma rays, and the sort, tend to become sources of radiation themselves (radioactive) upon removal of the original source. How true is this? What conditions must be met for it to occur? If true, why is the equipment in hospitals' x-ray facilities not secondarily radioactive? Or is it, to some degree? Information would be appreciated! imp

Your child is fortunate, indeed, though she may not know it. What a shame that during my own endeavors and interactions with people over the past many decades, I have only rarely encountered individuals with the foresight you possess. imp

I distinctly remember, in 5th. grade, our Science text claimed the moon does NOT rotate on an axis, like the earth. It also pointed out that the same "face" of the moon is always seen from the Earth, while the moon orbits around the Earth. I reasoned the moon MUST rotate in place, in order for the same view to be at all times present. This got me in trouble with the teacher, and others, who were so rigidly schooled they could not "see" the obvious.

Tom, here are a few things I recall about Tesla- (I'm a Tesla coil freak, sort of)- Transmission of massive amounts of power via high-frequency radio energy (which is what he proposed) seems to have limited practicality. He believed that resonance (in L-C) circuits was an unlimited natural "gift", which it really is not. Still, a Tesla coil does radiate energy in an impressive way; using that energy practically is another matter. For example, transmission of electrical power is accomplished via high-voltage a.c. at line frequency, not high-frequency, and the key important difference is that ONLY as much power as is needed, or being used at the receiving end, is being carried by the line at any given time. On the other hand, transmitted wireless power would be "on" at all times, radiating outward a fixed amount of energy; all unused energy would be wasted. A Tesla coil may be constructed successfully using rudimentary and easily obtained parts. If you like, let me know, and we can discuss in more detail. imp

My favorite way to do this is to use a tall, thin glass bottle, carbonated beverage type is good, with a round lip on top over which a toy balloon may be tightly secured after HCl and (usually), small chunks of Zn metal have been introduced. The rate of reaction may be too fast if conc. HCl is used. Do not allow the balloon to burst! When of reasonable size, pinch off and seal it's outlet. The balloon will be very light. If any flame is brought near the balloon, the sudden release of hydrogen gas combining with oxygen in the surrounding air makes a very impressive concussion! Use a LONG stick, at least a meter long (longer preferable) to bring the flame toward the balloon! The product of combination is, of course, water vapor. imp

Given one of the body's organs, let's say the pancreas, cells making up the organ are continually being replaced as present cells age and die. For some reason one division of cells produces new ones which differ in their reproductive process; they reproduce too soon. Those new cells, reproducing too quickly, constitute a "pancreatic cancer" Assuming the above happens, and that it happens frequently, do you believe the normal body is quickly aware of the abnormal cells, and makes every effort to eliminate them? If so, it follows that should the body be unable to totally eliminate those relatively few new abnormally multiplying cells, the pancreas has become "cancerous". Is the above process plausible? It would explain several of the mysteries of cancer. imp