Vienna - What exactly happens in a liquid during freezing have been found physicists at the University of Vienna and Amsterdam, now in computer simulations. Unlike previously assumed, can change even small nuclei of water molecules freeze the entire system, once the direct environment is right. "In some ways, the process is analogous to the revolution in Egypt," press release explains team leader Christoph Dellago over.
particle cloud decides not to nuclear size
Provides you a glass of water in the freezer, it will not immediately upon reaching the freezing point of ice. Still liquid, it cools further in a supercooled state in to the water molecules to ice already "do". In nucleation, as the process is physically close to a few molecules spontaneously to an ice crystal and form a nuclear freeze, which is growing rapidly and all the water can freeze into ice.
went So far, the "classical nucleation theory" assumes that these are constantly freezing nuclei, whereas the growth, however, made only as of their particular size. The current computer simulations to show that sometimes tiny seeds grow larger and disappear. Not the size of the seed is alone, but its structure so decisive. He has around his crystalline Core a sufficient cloud non-crystalline particles, it can also become established as a midget. The results were published in Physical Review Letters.
physics explains social processes
Some of it sounds like to Dellago much like the description of the beginning of a revolution. "So-called need metastable systems would prefer other states, but could continue to exist for some time. The transition to this goal a revolutionary process that begins at a certain place and supported by others." Similar to particle clouds joined Egypt in many dissatisfied with the small protests by students, initially without to have decided whether they wanted to join them or not.
were not entirely without problems, however, analogies to the company said Dellago. "Unlike in physics, there is no equilibrium in society-state because it changes constantly. In addition, the physics is aware of the strong networking such as those by electronic media and its consequences. In the nuclear field is all local and there is no understanding over long distances. " The comparative physics can describe social movements best and learn from, but virtually impossible to predict. "Otherwise it would not have given the financial crisis," the argument of the researcher.
