Nature Blog Network

Sunday, April 27, 2008

Calamari Thermal Gradient

So exactly how long does it take to thaw out a 495kg squid?



That is a good question. A few relevant details are that the thawing tank is a 10,000 Litre salt water tank. The 8m long squid is currently frozen in a block of ice.



Well it turns out that the best estimate by the folks at Te Papa were a little bit off from the original estimate due to a miscalculation of the amount of ice surrounding the squid. Still, they have adapted their schedule and as my Environmental Reaction and Transport Professor constantly reminds us, "What's a factor of two or three between friends?"



Follow all the developments and links to webcasts and webarchives at the Te Papa blog.

2 comments:

  1. I hope your exams went well ;)
    The videos of the lectures are not yet available, but we're working on it!
    In the meantime, we are already onto our next blog event (no video this time), which is the examination of a pygmy right whale (which stranded last year), starting tomorrow. Science never sleeps!
    Here are the first stories:
    http://blog.tepapa.govt.nz/category/pygmy-right-whale/

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi there,
    I just wanted to let you know that the videos of some of the lectures are finally available. Same URL: http://www.tepapa.govt.nz/squid

    Enjoy :)

    ReplyDelete

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