ghais/gist:3989200

## gistfile1.txt
The following is supposedly an actual question given on a University of  Washington chemistry mid-term. The answer by one student was so
 "profound" that the professor shared it with colleagues, via the Internet, which is, of course, why we now have the pleasure of enjoying it as well.


Is Hell exothermic (gives off heat) or endothermic  (absorbs heat)?Most of the students wrote proofs of their beliefs using Boyle's Law (gas  cools when it expands and heats when it is compressed) or some variant.

                    One student, however, wrote the following:


First, we need to know how the mass of Hell is changing in time. So we
 need to know the rate at which souls are moving into Hell and the rate
 at which they are leavingI think that we can safely assume that once a
 soul gets to Hell, it will not leave. Therefore, no souls are leaving.
 As for how many souls are entering Hell, let's look at the different
 Religions that exist in the world today. Most of these religions state
 that if you are not a member of their religion, you will go to Hell.
  Since there is more than one of these religions and since people do not
 belong to more than one religion, we can project that all souls go to
 Hell. With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the number of
 souls in Hell to increase exponentially. Now, we look at the rate of
 change of the volume in Hell because Boyle's Law states that in order for
 the temperature and pressure in Hell to stay the same, the volume of Hell
 has to expand proportionately as souls are added.
                                      This gives two possibilities:
 1. If Hell is expanding at a slower rate than the rate at which souls
 enter Hell, then the temperature and pressure in Hell will increase until
 all Hell breaks loose.

 2. If Hell is expanding at a rate faster than the increase of souls in
 Hell, then the temperature and pressure will drop until Hell freezes
 over. So which is it?

 If we accept the postulate given to me by Teresa during my Freshman year  that, "It will be a cold day in Hell before I sleep with you", and take
 into account the fact that I slept with her last night, then number 2
 must be true, and thus I am sure that Hell is exothermic and has already
 frozen over.  The corollary of this theory is that---since Hell has
 frozen over, it follows that it is not accepting any more souls and is
 therefore, extinct...leaving only Heaven thereby proving the existence of
 a divine being which explains why, last night, Teresa kept shouting "Oh
 my God."

 THIS STUDENT RECEIVED THE ONLY "A"
	The following is supposedly an actual question given on a University of Washington chemistry mid-term. The answer by one student was so
	"profound" that the professor shared it with colleagues, via the Internet, which is, of course, why we now have the pleasure of enjoying it as well.



	Is Hell exothermic (gives off heat) or endothermic (absorbs heat)?Most of the students wrote proofs of their beliefs using Boyle's Law (gas cools when it expands and heats when it is compressed) or some variant.

	One student, however, wrote the following:



	First, we need to know how the mass of Hell is changing in time. So we
	need to know the rate at which souls are moving into Hell and the rate
	at which they are leavingI think that we can safely assume that once a
	soul gets to Hell, it will not leave. Therefore, no souls are leaving.
	As for how many souls are entering Hell, let's look at the different
	Religions that exist in the world today. Most of these religions state
	that if you are not a member of their religion, you will go to Hell.
	Since there is more than one of these religions and since people do not
	belong to more than one religion, we can project that all souls go to
	Hell. With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the number of
	souls in Hell to increase exponentially. Now, we look at the rate of
	change of the volume in Hell because Boyle's Law states that in order for
	the temperature and pressure in Hell to stay the same, the volume of Hell
	has to expand proportionately as souls are added.
	This gives two possibilities:
	1. If Hell is expanding at a slower rate than the rate at which souls
	enter Hell, then the temperature and pressure in Hell will increase until
	all Hell breaks loose.

	2. If Hell is expanding at a rate faster than the increase of souls in
	Hell, then the temperature and pressure will drop until Hell freezes
	over. So which is it?

	If we accept the postulate given to me by Teresa during my Freshman year that, "It will be a cold day in Hell before I sleep with you", and take
	into account the fact that I slept with her last night, then number 2
	must be true, and thus I am sure that Hell is exothermic and has already
	frozen over. The corollary of this theory is that---since Hell has
	frozen over, it follows that it is not accepting any more souls and is
	therefore, extinct...leaving only Heaven thereby proving the existence of
	a divine being which explains why, last night, Teresa kept shouting "Oh
	my God."

	THIS STUDENT RECEIVED THE ONLY "A"