- #1
Infrasound
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In thinking about specific heat, I have been unable to resolve a particular issue.
If molecules in a substance are bumped and move faster, then they will measue to be at a temperature proportional to the speed they are moving which is a consequence of how hard on average they were hit(heat energy).
The law of conservation of energy suggests (to a very simple mind) that all substances of equal mass will require the same amount of energy to increase in temperature by a specific amount.
I know this is not true.
I also know that molecules can vibrate internally (the atoms in a molecule jiggle relative to each other). I think i have heard this referred to as degrees of freedom.
THE QUESTION: Why wouldn't the internal vibrations contribute to temperature? Wouldn't the vibrating atoms of a molecule in their oscillations bump out and hit other molecules and speed them up, thus making the temperature read at what would be expected to a lay person.
Is this really what causes varying specific heat capacities? If so, what is restricitng the internal vibrations from contributing to the temperature reading of the substance?
If molecules in a substance are bumped and move faster, then they will measue to be at a temperature proportional to the speed they are moving which is a consequence of how hard on average they were hit(heat energy).
The law of conservation of energy suggests (to a very simple mind) that all substances of equal mass will require the same amount of energy to increase in temperature by a specific amount.
I know this is not true.
I also know that molecules can vibrate internally (the atoms in a molecule jiggle relative to each other). I think i have heard this referred to as degrees of freedom.
THE QUESTION: Why wouldn't the internal vibrations contribute to temperature? Wouldn't the vibrating atoms of a molecule in their oscillations bump out and hit other molecules and speed them up, thus making the temperature read at what would be expected to a lay person.
Is this really what causes varying specific heat capacities? If so, what is restricitng the internal vibrations from contributing to the temperature reading of the substance?