
Solving a Mystery Behind the Deadly ‘Tsunami of Molasses’ of 1919 - pcl
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/26/science/boston-molasses-flood-science.html
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semi-extrinsic
It's all down to the Reynolds number, which relates viscosity ('sluggishness'
of the fluid) n, length scale L and speed v. Re = v*L/n; if this number is
low, stuff "happens slowly", if large, stuff "happens quickly".

So if you scale things up, making L larger, you can get fluids that we usually
think of as "slow" to act like they're "quick". Like magma: very sticky, but a
big enough lava flow can outrun a car.

<insert standard disclaimer about handwaving in above comment>

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semi-extrinsic
Also, as someone in fluid dynamics, I find it interesting that this student
project is featured in the NY Times. I mean, it's not trivial, but it's
certainly less work and less interesting/innovative than e.g. what the average
PhD student produces.

Would it have been in the NY Times if someone at a less prestigious
university, led by a less well-connected advisor, had given this project?
Somehow I doubt it.

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davidf18
It paints a bizarre picture of people running from and being killed by waves
of gooey, molten sugar, hence a story of interest to the general public, yet
one based in science and engineering.

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bcaulfield
There's an old saying in journalism "if it bleeds it leads." Holds true even
in science coverage, and even at the New York Times.

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jahewson
For those interested in this unusual event, the book _Dark Tide: The Great
Boston Molasses Flood of 1919_ chronicles the run-up to the disaster and the
enormous court case which followed, in which USIA attempted to blame Italian
anarchists for the tank's destruction.

The book also suggests that the behaviour of warm molasses was a likely
factor, notably the effect of combining it with the cold molasses already in
the tank. So this new research fits perfectly.

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PaulAJ
I will never describe sluggish software as "running like molasses" again.

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mhurron
Always specify cold molasses, or molasses in winter.

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cauterized
You do realize the event in question occurred during a Boston January?

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mhurron
The molasses itself was fermenting raising its temperature significantly. It
cooled and slowed very quickly when it was out of that environment.

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cauterized
It was still molasses in winter. ;-)

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failrate
Why is it that causes of death like this are simultaneously ridiculous and
horrifying? Is it my brain reacting to the horror accounting for the hilarity,
or is it just that molasses seems so benign?

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LordFrith
One of the issues of Murder Can Be Fun was on the great flood

[https://www.amazon.com/Murder-disasters-Boston-molasses-
floo...](https://www.amazon.com/Murder-disasters-Boston-molasses-
flood/dp/B0028GMM96)

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tomjacobs
Someone watched Drunk History last night.

