Friday, February 21, 2014

Thank you Bernoulli!

At my cousin's house. 

My head on my mother's lap, lying on the comfortable couch, I was fully relaxed. My mind was soaring on the highways on a pan Indian tour! I had just drove from Pondy to Chennai and I always loved driving on the highways. There was a clamour around, I was happily dreaming…

There was a little commotion around the fish tank! The aerator had stopped working and my aunt panicked. She had a valid reason to. Considering the small fish tank and the large fishes, the oxygen content of the water would not be sufficient for a long time to sustain those fishes without proper aeration. Those fishes were already seemed half dead and were settling on the lower portion of the fish tank. My aunt had lost fishes before because the aerator malfunctioned and so she was hullabaloo!

My aunt ordered me to go out with her and get a new one ASAP. I really did not want to move, but I couldn't deny either.

Show me the aerator, let me have a look, I said. I will repair it for you if you just give me 5 minutes.
I was too lazy to change my night dress and leave out on a cold night.
I opened up the aerator. I saw it had a small motor whose fan was propelled by an electromagnet. The motor pumped out water. On the pump outlet was an air vent. Oh, the Bernoulli's principle, I mused. When the water was pumped around the air vent, a negative pressure would be developed that would suck the air in. The problem here was that the air vent was displaced and was facing the opposite side! And that is why there was no aeration but water was being pumped out through the air vent.

I fixed it.

Tada! It works! I exclaimed!
Now don't call me anywhere, I announced!

Thanks to Mr. Daniel Bernoulli! And thanks to my physics teacher who inculcated so much interest in me that I still remember what I learnt 8 long years ago! I thank you people so very much!

Because of you, I go now back peacefully. Back to the couch, back on my mother’s lap, back to the highways lit by the beautiful evening sun, revving a 2000 cc SUV, piercing through the dashing wind, exploring, experiencing and fun !

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