Friday, April 30
Micro-hazard?
A interestin incident that occurred in the common kitchen over in Paris...this girl must be scarred for life...an averse fear of eggs nothwithstandin...i have new found respect for our everyday microwave oven...
A simple explanation for this...for all physics-philes..."The explosion really is caused by superheating, a complex phenomenon of the physics of phase changes. When water is heated over a flame, it gradually reaches a boil and turns to steam when the water temperature reaches 212F. But in a microwave, the heat is applied at a subatomic level, the water molecules can reach temperatures above 212F without changing phase from water to vapor. If these "superheated" molecules are jarred or disturbed, they will change from water to vapor in an instant, releasing a huge burst of steam, or even a small explosion. You can sometimes see this effect by making a cup of instant coffee from very hot microwaved water. When you drop in the powdered coffee, the superheated water can boil explosively, the water can gush right out of the cup like a geyser."
Im not in a position to wax lyrical bout the microwave...you see...my experiences with the microwave dont number more than 50 in my entire life...my mom doesnt believe in the microwave...and still practices the age-old adage of steamin the 'whatever needs to be heated' in the rice cooker to a certain temperature before servin the food...heck she doesnt even know how to operate a microwave...and until last year...i was a microwave noob too...
Thank god for my friends...some of em who live alone...the microwave...together with the fridge... is hands down the most essential item in the kitchen...nothin beats comin home dead-beat from work...openin the freezer and chuckin in wat frozen leftovers into the microwave...and voila!...hot steamin food within 2 minutes...
Ive never had the luxury of that...i find myself askin my friends how to manipulate the mind bogglin array of buttons...it's all really quite alien to me...tupperware in the microwave? Ask me that 3 months ago and i would have shrugged my shoulders...plastic in a baking hot environment only means one thing to me - it will melt and thus render whatever food in there unedible...
But it's really quite fascinatin too...a microwave is a tickin Chernobyl...you are just seperated by a flimsy see-through glass door...should those bombardin atoms be exposed to you....god...i dont even wana imagine...
Ahh i blabber too much...for now..it's back to my lunch...
Microwaved lunch :-)
A interestin incident that occurred in the common kitchen over in Paris...this girl must be scarred for life...an averse fear of eggs nothwithstandin...i have new found respect for our everyday microwave oven...
A simple explanation for this...for all physics-philes..."The explosion really is caused by superheating, a complex phenomenon of the physics of phase changes. When water is heated over a flame, it gradually reaches a boil and turns to steam when the water temperature reaches 212F. But in a microwave, the heat is applied at a subatomic level, the water molecules can reach temperatures above 212F without changing phase from water to vapor. If these "superheated" molecules are jarred or disturbed, they will change from water to vapor in an instant, releasing a huge burst of steam, or even a small explosion. You can sometimes see this effect by making a cup of instant coffee from very hot microwaved water. When you drop in the powdered coffee, the superheated water can boil explosively, the water can gush right out of the cup like a geyser."
Im not in a position to wax lyrical bout the microwave...you see...my experiences with the microwave dont number more than 50 in my entire life...my mom doesnt believe in the microwave...and still practices the age-old adage of steamin the 'whatever needs to be heated' in the rice cooker to a certain temperature before servin the food...heck she doesnt even know how to operate a microwave...and until last year...i was a microwave noob too...
Thank god for my friends...some of em who live alone...the microwave...together with the fridge... is hands down the most essential item in the kitchen...nothin beats comin home dead-beat from work...openin the freezer and chuckin in wat frozen leftovers into the microwave...and voila!...hot steamin food within 2 minutes...
Ive never had the luxury of that...i find myself askin my friends how to manipulate the mind bogglin array of buttons...it's all really quite alien to me...tupperware in the microwave? Ask me that 3 months ago and i would have shrugged my shoulders...plastic in a baking hot environment only means one thing to me - it will melt and thus render whatever food in there unedible...
But it's really quite fascinatin too...a microwave is a tickin Chernobyl...you are just seperated by a flimsy see-through glass door...should those bombardin atoms be exposed to you....god...i dont even wana imagine...
Ahh i blabber too much...for now..it's back to my lunch...
Microwaved lunch :-)
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