Profile for animals:
none
Recent front page messages:
none
Best answers to questions:
[read all their answers]
- a member for 3 years, 6 months and 5 days
- has posted 0 messages on the main board
- has posted 0 messages on the talk board
- has posted 0 messages on the links board
- has posted 7 stories and 0 replies on question of the week
- They liked 0 pictures, 0 links, 0 talk posts, and 0 qotw answers.
- Ignore this user
- Add this user as a friend
- send me a message
none
Recent front page messages:
none
Best answers to questions:
» Pointless Experiments
Mosquitoes in the Rain
Many years ago I walked into the backyard at night to enjoy a smoke. It began raining pretty hard but I didn't seek shelter. A few minutes later a mosquito bit me. I was amazed. How in the hell could a mosquito fly around in the rain? Surely falling raindrops would instantly ground a flying mosquito.
I pondered the problem and realized the truth might be surprising. I cut a foot square of light-colored cardboard and put it in the rain for ten seconds. Then I counted the rain drops that had hit the square. I realized even if the square was entirely covered with drops, that's only two-dimensions which is deceptive. It was invalid to imagine each raindrop as a column of water through which a mosquito couldn't fly. For the rain to hit a mosquito the drop and the mosquito would have to be in the same place at the same time, which is extremely unlikely. Imagine taking a 3D snapshot of a cubic foot of air space during a rain. How many drop-sized points are there in the space? Tens of thousands. How many of those spots would contain a drop of rain at any given moment? Not many. It looked like a mosquito being hit by a drop of rain would be the exception rather than the rule.
Then I had another realization. Each drop pushes the air in front of it out of its path as it falls. A flying mosquito is likely to be pushed aside by the air in front of a falling rain drop rather than be hit, even if a drop would have hit it. Similarly a butterfly is often pushed aside from your windshield as you drive rather than being hit.
I convinced myself that in general mosquitoes can fly through the rain unhindered.
(Mon 28th Jul 2008, 20:18, More)
Mosquitoes in the Rain
Many years ago I walked into the backyard at night to enjoy a smoke. It began raining pretty hard but I didn't seek shelter. A few minutes later a mosquito bit me. I was amazed. How in the hell could a mosquito fly around in the rain? Surely falling raindrops would instantly ground a flying mosquito.
I pondered the problem and realized the truth might be surprising. I cut a foot square of light-colored cardboard and put it in the rain for ten seconds. Then I counted the rain drops that had hit the square. I realized even if the square was entirely covered with drops, that's only two-dimensions which is deceptive. It was invalid to imagine each raindrop as a column of water through which a mosquito couldn't fly. For the rain to hit a mosquito the drop and the mosquito would have to be in the same place at the same time, which is extremely unlikely. Imagine taking a 3D snapshot of a cubic foot of air space during a rain. How many drop-sized points are there in the space? Tens of thousands. How many of those spots would contain a drop of rain at any given moment? Not many. It looked like a mosquito being hit by a drop of rain would be the exception rather than the rule.
Then I had another realization. Each drop pushes the air in front of it out of its path as it falls. A flying mosquito is likely to be pushed aside by the air in front of a falling rain drop rather than be hit, even if a drop would have hit it. Similarly a butterfly is often pushed aside from your windshield as you drive rather than being hit.
I convinced myself that in general mosquitoes can fly through the rain unhindered.
(Mon 28th Jul 2008, 20:18, More)
» Expensive Mistakes
Bye-Bye Savings
I got laid off in 1999 and decided to use my savings to day-trade stocks. I figured I could work from home and earn as much or more than I had made before. So I day-traded stocks during the 2000/2001 crash and lost $82,000 USD.
(Sat 27th Oct 2007, 3:41, More)
Bye-Bye Savings
I got laid off in 1999 and decided to use my savings to day-trade stocks. I figured I could work from home and earn as much or more than I had made before. So I day-traded stocks during the 2000/2001 crash and lost $82,000 USD.
(Sat 27th Oct 2007, 3:41, More)
» Top Tips
Get rid of underground yellowjacket nest in US: #1
When the nest is quiet after dusk pour a little syrup into and around the hole. Repeat every other day until a foraging skunk or raccoon discovers the syrup. It will dig up the nest and eat all the bees. I've used this trick and it worked great within two days.
(Fri 18th May 2007, 21:55, More)
Get rid of underground yellowjacket nest in US: #1
When the nest is quiet after dusk pour a little syrup into and around the hole. Repeat every other day until a foraging skunk or raccoon discovers the syrup. It will dig up the nest and eat all the bees. I've used this trick and it worked great within two days.
(Fri 18th May 2007, 21:55, More)
» Top Tips
Get rid of underground yellowjacket nest in US: #2
Place a heavy clear pyrex bowl upside down over the hole. The bowl will fill with angry starving bees who will not know to dig another exit. After two or three days the colony dies. I've used this and it worked great. Don't do this with kids around.
(Fri 18th May 2007, 21:58, More)
Get rid of underground yellowjacket nest in US: #2
Place a heavy clear pyrex bowl upside down over the hole. The bowl will fill with angry starving bees who will not know to dig another exit. After two or three days the colony dies. I've used this and it worked great. Don't do this with kids around.
(Fri 18th May 2007, 21:58, More)