I remember once hearing this on the radio once and decided to Google it to see if I could find it...I did. I remember the valuable things I learnt from John Wesley College, especially from digitaldion. But why didn't we learn this stuff?
University of Washington exam question:
"Is Hell exothermic or endothermic? Support your answer with a proof."
"Exothermic" means that the system gives off heat; "endothermic" means that it adsorbs heat.
About Boyle's law:
Most of the students' answers made reference to Boyle's law. This is a fundamental law in chemistry that describes how the temperature of a gas varies with its pressure. When a gas expands, it cools off. This can be observed when you open the valve on a compressed air pipe; the air released will cool down the the surroundings. When a gas is compressed, it heats up. This is why, when you pump up a tire with a hand pump, the gas is compressed and heats up the pump barrel.
Air conditioners work by first compressing a gas, causing it to heat up. Then the gas is allowed to cool. Finally, it is permitted to expand, thus cooling its surroundings.
The answer:
The student who received an "A" started his calculations by considering whether the total mass of Hell was increasing or decreasing with time. For this, he had to first calculate whether there was a net increase in the number of souls in Hell with time, or a reduction.From basic theological assumptions, no souls ever leave Hell. Hell is conceived of as a place of punishment where its inmates are tortured for all eternity. On the other hand, souls are continually entering Hell. The student observed that many religions teach that anyone who is not a member will go to Hell. Historically, Christians have taught that all non-Christians will go to Hell. And many non-Christians have believed that all Christians will go there as well. One might therefore assume that all souls will end up in Hell. Thus with souls continually entering Hell and no souls exiting, the total mass of Hell is increasing.
There are two possibilities:
If the volume of Hell is expanding at a slower rate than souls are entering, then the temperature and pressure in Hell will "clearly increase until all Hell breaks loose."
On the other hand, if hell is expanding faster than this rate, then the temperature and pressure will "drop until Hell freezes over."
The student recalled a postulate given to him by a certain coed during his freshman year. She said that "it will be a cold night in Hell before I sleepwith you." He noted that he had still not been able to engage in sexual relationships with her. He concluded that Hell is in no danger of freezing over. Thus Option 2 is invalid, the temperature of Hell is increasing, and thus Hell is exothermic.
Is Heaven hotter than Hell?
The temperatures of Heaven and of Hell are not given specifically in the Bible. That may be because the various temperature scales (Fahrenheit, Celsius, Rankin and Kelvin) were not created by the 1st century CE. However, there is sufficient data available to calculate the temperature of Heaven. The maximum temperature of Hell can also be determined.
Heaven's temperature: Isaiah 30:26 states: "Moreover, the light of the Moon shall be as the light of the Sun and the light of the Sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days." One individual interpreted this passage as meaning that the radiation received by Heaven from the sun is 7 times 7 or 49 times as much as the earth does today. 1 Added to that is the contribution of the moon which would equal the present amount that the earth receives from the sun. Thus Heaven would receive (49 + 1) or 50 times the radiation as the earth does today. The Stefan-Boltzmann law for radiation links the temperature of an object with the amount of radiation received. It would predict that the temperature of heaven would be 498 degrees Celsius hotter than the earth is currently. Thus heaven would be about 525 °C or 977 °F.
However, this temperature would only be the "steady-state" temperature. Presumably Heaven was created shortly after Earth so that it would be ready for its first inhabitants: Abel, Adam and Eve. Revelation 21:17 says that the walls of New Jerusalem are 144 cubits thick. This is about 66 meters or 216 feet. Such a thick wall would be an effective insulator. Heaven would thus have taken many months to reach its equilibrium temperature. But it presumably has reached about 525 °C today.
Hell's Temperature: Revelation 21:8 states "But the fearful, and unbelieving ... shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone." Brimstone is sulphur. In order for sulphur to be molten, its temperature must be at or below 444.6 °C or 832 °F.
Thus heaven is at least 80 °C or 145 °F hotter than Hell. Assuming that the glorified bodies that the inhabitants have in Heaven are as sensitive to heat as our present earthly bodies, then they would suffer greatly; Heaven would become worse than Hell. Since that cannot happen, due to theological considerations, Heaven must have some very effective methods of air conditioning to handle the excess incoming radiation.
The student who received an "A" started his calculations by considering whether the total mass of Hell was increasing or decreasing with time. For this, he had to first calculate whether there was a net increase in the number of souls in Hell with time, or a reduction.From basic theological assumptions, no souls ever leave Hell. Hell is conceived of as a place of punishment where its inmates are tortured for all eternity. On the other hand, souls are continually entering Hell. The student observed that many religions teach that anyone who is not a member will go to Hell. Historically, Christians have taught that all non-Christians will go to Hell. And many non-Christians have believed that all Christians will go there as well. One might therefore assume that all souls will end up in Hell. Thus with souls continually entering Hell and no souls exiting, the total mass of Hell is increasing.
There are two possibilities:
If the volume of Hell is expanding at a slower rate than souls are entering, then the temperature and pressure in Hell will "clearly increase until all Hell breaks loose."
On the other hand, if hell is expanding faster than this rate, then the temperature and pressure will "drop until Hell freezes over."
The student recalled a postulate given to him by a certain coed during his freshman year. She said that "it will be a cold night in Hell before I sleepwith you." He noted that he had still not been able to engage in sexual relationships with her. He concluded that Hell is in no danger of freezing over. Thus Option 2 is invalid, the temperature of Hell is increasing, and thus Hell is exothermic.
Is Heaven hotter than Hell?
The temperatures of Heaven and of Hell are not given specifically in the Bible. That may be because the various temperature scales (Fahrenheit, Celsius, Rankin and Kelvin) were not created by the 1st century CE. However, there is sufficient data available to calculate the temperature of Heaven. The maximum temperature of Hell can also be determined.
Heaven's temperature: Isaiah 30:26 states: "Moreover, the light of the Moon shall be as the light of the Sun and the light of the Sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days." One individual interpreted this passage as meaning that the radiation received by Heaven from the sun is 7 times 7 or 49 times as much as the earth does today. 1 Added to that is the contribution of the moon which would equal the present amount that the earth receives from the sun. Thus Heaven would receive (49 + 1) or 50 times the radiation as the earth does today. The Stefan-Boltzmann law for radiation links the temperature of an object with the amount of radiation received. It would predict that the temperature of heaven would be 498 degrees Celsius hotter than the earth is currently. Thus heaven would be about 525 °C or 977 °F.
However, this temperature would only be the "steady-state" temperature. Presumably Heaven was created shortly after Earth so that it would be ready for its first inhabitants: Abel, Adam and Eve. Revelation 21:17 says that the walls of New Jerusalem are 144 cubits thick. This is about 66 meters or 216 feet. Such a thick wall would be an effective insulator. Heaven would thus have taken many months to reach its equilibrium temperature. But it presumably has reached about 525 °C today.
Hell's Temperature: Revelation 21:8 states "But the fearful, and unbelieving ... shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone." Brimstone is sulphur. In order for sulphur to be molten, its temperature must be at or below 444.6 °C or 832 °F.
Thus heaven is at least 80 °C or 145 °F hotter than Hell. Assuming that the glorified bodies that the inhabitants have in Heaven are as sensitive to heat as our present earthly bodies, then they would suffer greatly; Heaven would become worse than Hell. Since that cannot happen, due to theological considerations, Heaven must have some very effective methods of air conditioning to handle the excess incoming radiation.
1 comment:
Perhaps one of the primary reasons was because it was proven to be a false hypothesis (didn't I teach you that in third year!?)
David Bohm (google him) adapted the Heisenberg principle (google it) and the EPR effect (google it, or Einstein, Podoslky and Rosen and Tunneling effect, or EPR paradox).
Quite simply an explication of a much deeper implicate reality has no direct bearing on the temperature change of any casual space - since it is neither a particle nor a wave. Moreover, as Schroedinger showed (google him, and particular his famous experiment, 'Schrodingers cat), it is impossible to teach a truth without in some way subjectively become a part of that truth.
The result is that we tried to keep the seminary from being an experience of hell.... Although, let's be honest sometimes it was evangelical enough to elicit repentance.
It is either all of the above, or we simply forgot to teach that class.
Ha ha! You take your pick.
Much blessing,
D
PS. you've been blogged.
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