Date:         Sun, 17 Jan 1999 18:31:18 -0800
Reply-To:     Austin <austins@IX.NETCOM.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Austin <austins@IX.NETCOM.COM>
Subject:      Photon driven Vanagon - The Answer
Comments: To: vanagon@vanagon.com
In-Reply-To:  <s6a1b4ec.089@collchem.cchem.berkeley.edu>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

At 10:00 AM 1/17/99 -0800, you wrote:
>
>This is how it works:  In the sunlight, the black surface heats up more
than the shinning surface.  So the dark side of the paddle is hotter and
heats up the air on it surface.  The air expands and pushes it forward..
thus the paddle spins with the black side trailing.  Put it under a cold
light source, like a flourence light and it won;t turn.  Remove the air
from inside the bulb totally, and it won't work either.
>
>Sorry.. Mechanical "force" from photons, even travelling at the speed of
light is neglible and would be quite insufficient to power the little
paddle wheel, much less power the vanagon... and "neglible" and
"insufficient" is the understandment of the century!
>
>Yau-Man Chan
>87 GL
>
SOOooo - how many of these babies do I have to put on the roof of the
Vanagon, & how many yards of rubber bands to connect them to the
transaxle...????  (But I *do* understand it won't work at night, even under
a full moon).

Austin