Tuesday, September 24, 2024

Wednesday, September 18, 2024

Re: Watch "Space Shuttle Combustion Chamber" on YouTube

I've seen something similar to this if not this same video.

I've had a theory that maybe it would be possible to increase the thrust by increasing the exhaust speed. This would require tougher materials to allow for more pressure in the combustion chamber.

An ion thruster can achieve speeds of 50 km/s.  That's great, but imagine if the technology could achieve relativistic speeds.

On Wed, Sep 18, 2024 at 11:35 AM Albert


Space Shuttle Combustion Chamber

Sunday, September 15, 2024

How Human Knowledge Works...

Why Japanese People Are Not Obese Like People In The US?

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/FKPSra_NciI

I assume that it is not just "healthy" food but the quantity of food that people like to eat.  Americans love to overeat.  I think that eating out is the cause of obesity because it is not only junk food but the large portion sizes.

I wonder if buffets are an American-only phenomenon?

Watch "Lithium is dangerous"

On Sun, Sep 15, 2024 at 12:10 AM Albert wrote:
When these batteries die, get rid of them immediately, Here's why.



I knew pure sodium is super reactive with just about everything, especially water, and can explode.  I didn't know that about Lithium.  They both produce hydrogen gas when they react with water.  Lithium, Sodium, and Potassium are all on the first column of the period table, meaning they have similar chemical properties.

Sodium Chloride and Potassium Chloride are very safe.  I buy "Lite Salt" which has 50% of each.

Most batteries you would buy in the store are alkaline, containing potassium hydroxide, which is not so reactive but corrosive.

Rechargeable batteries use Lithium-ion.  

Lithium carbonate in small quantities can be used as an anti-depressant.

Sunday, September 8, 2024

There's something about time that physicists can't explain | Avshalom El...

https://youtube.com/shorts/hktmnRxTfcM?si=ZMApbwXFk2rQGUY1

The fundamental substances and forces of nature appear to be fields. If a field has enough energy/vibration at a location then we get a particle. If the vibration is less then we don't. There is good evidence for this, although there is at least one alternate theory.

We may never know what the fields are made of or why they exist. A computer would not know that it is made of logic gates if it can't see the logic gates, although a sufficiently smart computer might figure it out.

Saturday, September 7, 2024

Does the Erucic Acid Level Make Canola Oil Unsafe?

I have looked at many articles. The vast majority say that Canola Oil is safe in moderation.

Most of the oils in Canola Oil are healthy, but Canola Oil also contains Erucic Acid.   Erucic Acid is toxic (to heart health) so it seems to me that it would be better not to consume any.  However, the exact amount of Erucic Acid in Canola Oil is unclear.  Almost all sources claim that the Euric Acid level is 2% or less by law, although the article below says that it is barely detectable, only around 0.01% in Canadian-made Canola Oil.
 
Although the government classifies Canola Oil as safe, the recommended safe level of Erucic Acid is about 7 mg per kilogram of body weight.  For me, that would be about 3/4 of a gram.

"For reference, 1 tablespoon of canola oil can contain a maximum of 280 mg of erucic acid. This means a person who weighs 80 kg can have around 2 tbsp of canola oil per day. "

https://www.goodrx.com/well-being/diet-nutrition/is-rapeseed-oil-healthy

The problem is that we don't know if it actually has that much Erucic Acid.  

The same article mentions that Canola Oil has a tiny amount of trans fat.

Two tablespoons isn't that much.  I used to cook popcorn with 2 ounces of Canola Oil.  That is about 4 tablespoons, so I could have exceeded the recommended level of Erucic Acid.

According to this page, the Erucic Acid level in Canola Oil is not 2% but 0.2%.  So that should make Canola Oil safe in moderation.

https://extension.okstate.edu/fact-sheets/canola-oil-properties.html

For several months, I have been using Extra Virgin Olive Oil instead.  It is at least five times more expensive than Canola Oil, but I only use it 2 or 3 times per week.  The cost is not a big issue.

Olive Oil is a key component of the Mediterranean Diet.  Many sources claim that Olive Oil does not have any trans fat.

According to at least a couple of sources, you can use Olive Oil for frying if you don't get it too hot.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PIEamGRnVQ

The smoke point of Canola Oil is 399 degrees Fahrenheit.  Because of this, it is considered heat resistant and good for frying.  The smoke point of Olive Oil varies from 350 to 430 degrees.

If I am being honest, other things in my diet are riskier than Canola Oil.  I need to work on those as well.

Is salt actually bad for you? Why do some people like salt way more than others do?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jy2ncip_ILA&t=4599s

The first hour of this video gets deep into the science and is also interesting.