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Broken Water(?)

This is a rant I've had kind of ongoing for a little over a year now. What I want to know is if water is breakable. That's it. That's all I ask. Ok, I ask more, but for sake of this particular rant, that's all I want to know.

Now, my current conclusion is that water is not breakable. Not because I don't think water is breakable, but mostly due to the english languge. I blame many things on the english language because I can. Since I base my answer largely on the english language, let's start with the basics. First, the definition of broken (break) from the Merriam-Webster website is as follows:

Main Entry: break
Pronunciation: 'brAk
Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): broke /'brOk/; bro·ken /'brO-k&n/; break·ing
Etymology: Middle English breken, from Old English brecan; akin to Old High German brehhan to break, Latin frangere Date: before 12th century
1 a : to separate into parts with suddenness or violence b : FRACTURE c : RUPTURE d : to cut into and turn over the surface of e : to render inoperable 2 a : VIOLATE, TRANSGRESS b : to invalidate (a will) by action at law 3 a archaic : to force entry into b : to burst and force a way through c : to escape by force from d : to make or effect by cutting, forcing, or pressing through 4 : to disrupt the order or compactness of 5 : to make ineffective as a binding force 6 a : to defeat utterly and end as an effective force : DESTROY b : to crush the spirit of c : to make tractable or submissive: as (1) past part often broke : to train (an animal) to adjust to the service or convenience of humans (2) : INURE, ACCUSTOM d : to exhaust in health, strength, or capacity 7 a : to stop or bring to an end suddenly : HALT b : INTERRUPT, SUSPEND c : to open and bring about suspension of operation d : to destroy unity or completeness of e : to change the appearance of uniformity of f : to split the surface of g : to cause to discontinue a habit 8 a : to make known : TELL b : to bring to attention or prominence initially 9 a : to ruin financially b : to reduce in rank 10 a : to split into smaller units, parts, or processes : DIVIDE b (1) : to give or get the equivalent of (a bill) in smaller denominations (2) : to use as the denomination in paying a bill -- often used with into, up, or down 11 a : to check the speed, force, or intensity of b : to cause failure and discontinuance of (a strike) by measures outside bargaining processes 12 : to cause a sudden significant decrease in the price, value, or volume of 13 a : EXCEED, SURPASS b : to score less than (a specified total) c : to win against (an opponent's service) in a racket game 14 : to open the action of (a breechloader) 15 a : to find an explanation or solution for : SOLVE b : to discover the essentials of (a code or cipher system) 16 : to demonstrate the falsity of 17 : to ruin the prospects of 18 : to produce visibly

Here's the definition of water:

Main Entry: wa·ter
Pronunciation: 'wo-t&r, 'wä-
Function: noun
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English węter; akin to Old High German wazzar water, Greek hydOr, Latin unda wave Date: before 12th century
1 a : the liquid that descends from the clouds as rain, forms streams, lakes, and seas, and is a major constituent of all living matter and that when pure is an odorless, tasteless, very slightly compressible liquid oxide of hydrogen H2O which appears bluish in thick layers, freezes at 0° C and boils at 100° C, has a maximum density at 4° C and a high specific heat, is feebly ionized to hydrogen and hydroxyl ions, and is a poor conductor of electricity and a good solvent b : a natural mineral water -- usually used in plural 2 : a particular quantity or body of water: as a (1) plural : the water occupying or flowing in a particular bed (2) chiefly British : LAKE, POND b : a quantity or depth of water adequate for some purpose (as navigation) c plural (1) : a band of seawater abutting on the land of a particular sovereignty and under the control of that sovereignty (2) : the sea of a particular part of the earth d : WATER SUPPLY

Now, I will state the few arguments I have gotten from others, some of which will probably match your own, and the flaws I have found in them.

Pregnancy

First of all, there is the pregnancy argument. Some women, towards the end of their pregnancy will have their "water break". However, the water is actually not breaking, the amniotic sac which is what holds the water is. The water is still water, whether or not it is inside or outside of the woman, and it is still intact either way. So no good there.

Ice

I have been told by some to freeze the water, and then drop it, and it will shatter, hence broken water. Not so, that would be broken Ice. Yes ice is water in a solid state, but the definition of WATER states that it is liquid. So, water as a solid is no longer water. It is ice. So broken ice, is not broken water.

Puddles

If there is a puddle of water, it can be separated into smaller puddles of water. However, the water isn't broken, since each individual puddle is also water, and not broken water.

Atomic Separation

If you were to separate the 2 Hydrogen atoms from the 1 oxygen atoms, you could in theory "break" the water into it's individual elements. The problem with this is that at the temperatures that water is actually water (1-100 degrees celsius, 32-212 degrees fahrenheit), both Hydrogen and Oxygen would be gases. So, if this procedure were possible and took place, the water would go directly from it's liquid form into 2 separate gases. The liquid would just disappear. However, it would be intact (not broken) until the atoms separated and as soon as they did, the liquid would no longer be there, but it would not be broken. It would just cease to exist. The only way I could see this as being possible would be to dramatically change the temperature so when the atoms separated, they would become the liquid form of their respective elements, but it would be virtually impossible to get them to reach those temperatures without the water being ice momentarily, or the elements being gas momentarily. Plus, to get those gases to appear as liquids, to give the illusion of a separation process that shows a constant liquid, would be virtually impossible. Plus, the conditions for each to be in those states are so extreme, that it's hardly arguable that the water would be broken, it would just be an illusion of consistency. The separation would really be the water to gas process I mentioned a few lines back. With those variables as they are, I can't consider that being a possibility, and not a valid argument at that. Nice try, though.

Flow Of Water

This argument was brought to me by John Coffey, and it is the best argument I've had so far. I still can't say that it proves water is breakable, but he has a point, and it is the closest to proving that there is a way to break it so far.
Picture a downward flow of water, i.e. a waterfall. This flow of water can be generalized as just water. To point at Niagra Falls and say: "That's water." is a vague statement, but accurate. If this water was not flowing, it would not be water. If Niagra Falls had stopped (for some strange reason), and you were to point to the same spot, and say "That's water." would be wrong. It would probably be very similar to a cliffside. So the vague description of "water" in this case, refers to the actual flow of the water, not so much as the liquid itself. So if you were to use some type of implement to cut across this flow of water, and disrupt it, you can arguably say that the water was broken, even if momentarily. You can picture this easier with say a garden hose pointing downward, and running your finger through the flow of water. There is a split second where the water (flow of water) is broken. This doesn't prove that water as a substance is breakable, but it proves that water as a concept (I guess) is breakable.

Update June 24, 2005

From my friend Bruce who is a member of TheNewTerror, he informed that one of the members "XO. JakeG[TNT]" is a science teacher. His response to my "Broken Water Theory":

The surfactant, which is a large molecule with both polar and non-polar ends, will interfere with all physical properties of the water (boiling point, freezing point, pH, pKa, density, etc...) thus rendering it broken.

If you don't believe it:

1. get a glass of water
2. gently float a small paperclip on the surface. (intermolecular forces known as hydrogen bonding will allow this)
3. add 2 tablespoons of liquid soap.
4 the paperclip will sink quickly.

Or, throw your glass of water into a blackhole. That will break it as well.


I still wonder if water with liquid soap in it would still TECHNICALLY be considered water. Maybe I'm a pessimist?

What's your opinion? We'd like to know. E-mail me:
Jake