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Re: Energy



At 06:20 PM 9/19/01 -0600, Larry Smith wrote:
We certainly have many instances where words in ordinary street
conversation don't mean exactly what they do in physics, I just never
realized that "flow" was one of them.

Not exactly? Of course not exactly. Realizing that any two things are not
"exactly" the same is hardly a major breakthrough.

Let's not quibble about details. Every English word has multiple shades of
meaning. The flow of water is not exactly the same as the flow of ideas.
But there is a rather large kernel of meaning that is common to these
flows, and to other usages of the word "flow".

Flowing energy is more closely analogous to flowing water than to flowing
ideas, because ideas are not a conserved quantity. Water is conserved by
ordinary mechanical processes. Energy is conserved.

It seems to me that we are arguing about whether the glass is 99% full or
1% empty. Yes, the glass is not "exactly" full. But it's full enough for
ordinary practical purposes. And saying that it is completely empty is
preposterous.