klenke Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 The answer is simple. The thermos wall is merely a thermally insulative barrier between an internal temperature and an external ambient temperature. The internal temperature will always trend toward the ambient. Therefore, if you put liquid in the thermos that is hotter than ambient, it will slowly cool to that ambient. Given enough time, the temps will equilibriate. If the liquid inside is colder than ambient, then it will warm up to the ambient and reach it after sufficient time. In this case, the heat flow is from outside to inside. Fluctuations in the ambient temperature merely change the time required to reach equilibrium. The thermos doesn't know anything. It's all thermodynamics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thinker Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 MY thermos knows stuff.....it talks to me when it's sad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iain Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 I too, have a friendly thermos. It calls itself Stanley. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dru Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 if only the thermos from my kc and the sunshine band lunchbox hadn't broken in 4th grade i could get $100 for it on ebay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mer Posted March 25, 2004 Share Posted March 25, 2004 Isn't saying that a difference is "not even noticable" the same as saying that two things are "identical"? Wait a minute are two things both identical? Or is one just itself while the other is identical to it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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