From: http://www.tweaktown.com/news/9051/msi_ … index.html
I thought this was interesting, not sure if it was posted before (searched best I could)
I thought this was interesting, not sure if it was posted before (searched best I could)
Last edited by _NL_Lt.EngineerFox (2008-04-11 13:29:59)
In this house, we obey the laws of thermodynamics!GR34 wrote:
Why cant they make the whole computer run on its own heat? it would have a lot of $ in the long run
Seriously, we can't break those laws and get away with it. I can't even begin to think how it would be possible to harness usable, efficient energy out of the heat that's being generated by the components in the computer.SenorToenails wrote:
In this house, we obey the laws of thermodynamics!GR34 wrote:
Why cant they make the whole computer run on its own heat? it would have a lot of $ in the long run
There's gotta be some way. Imagine coolers running off the heat created by the host chip. 100% accurate fan controlling!heggs wrote:
Seriously, we can't break those laws and get away with it. I can't even begin to think how it would be possible to harness usable, efficient energy out of the heat that's being generated by the components in the computer.SenorToenails wrote:
In this house, we obey the laws of thermodynamics!GR34 wrote:
Why cant they make the whole computer run on its own heat? it would have a lot of $ in the long run
It's one thing to imagine it, but it's quite another when you're limited by the way thermodynamics actually works. If we actually could harness that energy, we would have been utilizing it for a long time now. There are so many applications where energy is lost in the form of heat (internal combustion engine as one example) where this would be immensely useful. We've got so many talented scientists and engineers dealing with energy lost in the form of heat that if something could be made at this point in time with the current technology to harness it, then they would have implemented it by now.Freezer7Pro wrote:
There's gotta be some way. Imagine coolers running off the heat created by the host chip. 100% accurate fan controlling!heggs wrote:
Seriously, we can't break those laws and get away with it. I can't even begin to think how it would be possible to harness usable, efficient energy out of the heat that's being generated by the components in the computer.SenorToenails wrote:
In this house, we obey the laws of thermodynamics!
Last edited by mikkel (2008-04-11 17:04:03)
Agreed, you simply cannot get there from here. We will never hit 100% efficiency, and we will never come close.mikkel wrote:
Any heat is energy that can be converted to other forms of energy. All that matters is the efficiency in conversion. Making a computer that could run on its own heat would constitute either free energy, or 100% efficiency in the conversion from thermal energy to kinetic energy, and vice versa. These two things are holy grails of science, and according to current theory, impossible.
That's a bold statement. Never come close? You sound like President McKinely, who said that the patent office should be closed because everything that could be invented was already invented... in 1899!!heggs wrote:
Agreed, you simply cannot get there from here. We will never hit 100% efficiency, and we will never come close.mikkel wrote:
Any heat is energy that can be converted to other forms of energy. All that matters is the efficiency in conversion. Making a computer that could run on its own heat would constitute either free energy, or 100% efficiency in the conversion from thermal energy to kinetic energy, and vice versa. These two things are holy grails of science, and according to current theory, impossible.
Last edited by SpIk3y (2008-04-11 19:01:17)
Listen, have you taken any thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, or heat transfer courses? Have you taken ANY engineering courses? Do you realize what you are saying absolutely cannot happen. Don't fucking compare me to some ignorant president.SpIk3y wrote:
That's a bold statement. Never come close? You sound like President McKinely, who said that the patent office should be closed because everything that could be invented was already invented... in 1899!!heggs wrote:
Agreed, you simply cannot get there from here. We will never hit 100% efficiency, and we will never come close.mikkel wrote:
Any heat is energy that can be converted to other forms of energy. All that matters is the efficiency in conversion. Making a computer that could run on its own heat would constitute either free energy, or 100% efficiency in the conversion from thermal energy to kinetic energy, and vice versa. These two things are holy grails of science, and according to current theory, impossible.
In 200 years, science will have made advances unimaginable to us now. That's what makes it so cool. Approaching 100% efficiency could be one of them. You never know.
This man speaks the truth.heggs wrote:
Listen, have you taken any thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, or heat transfer courses? Have you taken ANY engineering courses? Do you realize what you are saying absolutely cannot happen. Don't fucking compare me to some ignorant president.
Science will make advances, but it will not fucking change the laws of thermodynamics. And no, I do know. A degree in Mechanical Engineering and 40k in debt says so. It is fundamentally impossible to get anything 100%.
The internal combustion engine that we have in our cars, you can expect a maximum of 20% efficiency (ie converting 20%(gas) of the energy put in into motivational power). To increase this number takes a tremendous amount of monetary and personnel resources. To think that this type of value doesn't translate to other systems is downright foolish and ignorant. For example, every decimal place you add to a part that will increase the tolerances to a more precise value can easily tack on an extra cost to the power of ten. This same type of cost will translate to increasing the efficiency of the system in question, because you will have to fundamentally alter some component of it, by altering one or more parts.
So basically, if you've got any engineering background, then you can tell me that I'm wrong, otherwise, go back to school and learn something.
'That looks like a huge...'
Striving for efficiency is a noble goal. 100% efficiency will never happen. Unless you can get around the laws of nature. I won't say that's not possible, but I can't fathom how.SpIk3y wrote:
My point is this - you are right that to the best of our knowledge, it is impossible. I understand that. But I think it is short-sighted to say that no one in the future will never even come close to achieving the goal, because new concepts and ideas beyond our current scope will be involved. I'm not saying that it will occur on a mass-marketable scale (like everyone driving 100% efficient cars) but it could happen in a lab environment. Or it may never happen. But you cannot rule it out.
I point you to the 'aether'.SpIk3y wrote:
Afterthought - doesn't science often work this way? A minority challenges the widely accepted, seemingly perfected theories and ideas of the time, only to be mocked and degraded until the stubborn majority finally agrees. Not saying that it will happen with thermodynamics, but it could.
"Thats a huge..."