This blog is for everyone who uses words.

The ordinary-sized words are for everyone, but the big ones are especially for children.



Monday, 9 November 2020

Spot the Frippet: Engler degrees.

 A lot of us are in lock-down of one sort or another at the moment, so here's something to look for in the home.

Engler degrees.

C Engler (1842 - 1925) was a German chemist who came up with Engler degrees

I assume the name wasn't a coincidence.

The basic idea of Engler degrees is that your pour a fluid into a standard-size hole and measure the speed with which it goes through it. Then you compare that with the speed of water.

I can't find out much about this system online, but I think you're supposed to take the measurement at 50 degrees centigrade.

Now, I don't suppose that many of us have the equipment around to measure this accurately, but it's still possible to appreciate the pouring motion of honey, say:


photo by Dino Giordano

or maple syrup, or yogurt, or a smoothie, or soap, or lotion, or oil:



photo by Netojinn


 or paint or polish:


photo by Disco-Dan

Yes: this is a day to observe the gloopiness of things.

Enjoy!

Spot the Frippet: Engler degrees. The word degree comes from the Latin de- which can mean more or less anything, and gradus, which means step.




No comments:

Post a Comment

All comments are very welcome, but please make them suitable for The Word Den's family audience.