Iv'e got this one

Microwaves work by exciting resonances in water molecules, and the water, once excited, heats up everything else in the frozen dinner you're cooking. Since water is an asymmetric triatomic molecule, it has three distinct rotational modes and three more vibrational modes, making it easy to find resonances. Nitrogen, on the other hand, is a symmetric diatomic molecule, so it only has one distinct rotational mode and one vibrational mode. That makes it much harder to match a resonance for nitrogen, so the microwave probably wouldn't do anything to it.

On the other hand it might.

Posted By: mike_the_sphinx on October 26th 2010 at 15:05:34

Message Thread

fao: pens. what would happen if you microwaved liquid nitrogen? (n/m) (General Chat) - Tombs, Oct 26, 15:00:00
- Iv'e got this one (General Chat) - mike_the_sphinx, Oct 26, 15:05:34
  - Pengasm. (n/m) (General Chat) - Arizona Bay, Oct 26, 15:13:27
    - ha ha (General Chat) - Tricky Hawes, Oct 26, 15:40:55
      - he knicked it off of the straight dope (General Chat) - Tombs, Oct 26, 16:47:04
        
        Lies I tell you.....all lies... (n/m) (General Chat) - mike_the_sphinx, Oct 26, 17:45:27
      - YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS, my very first Wroth POTD....i'm humbled (General Chat) - mike_the_sphinx, Oct 26, 16:21:01
        
        and surely your school science teacher. (n/m) (General Chat) - Tricky Hawes, Oct 26, 16:31:43
        
        and his fluffer. (n/m) (General Chat) - tudders, Oct 26, 16:35:18
        
        school science teachers only have those at posh schools. (n/m) (General Chat) - Tricky Hawes, Oct 26, 16:39:48
        
        At such schools, they're also known as Head Boy (General Chat) - Arizona Bay, Oct 26, 16:44:21
    - How was it for you AB? (n/m) (General Chat) - mike_the_sphinx, Oct 26, 15:16:37
      - I'm spent. (General Chat) - Arizona Bay, Oct 26, 16:05:51
    - Thar she bloooooooooows (n/m) (General Chat) - Old Git, Oct 26, 15:14:23
    - no (n/m) (General Chat) - pants, Oct 26, 15:14:14
      - agreed (n/m) (General Chat) - duke of york, Oct 26, 15:16:59
  - Woooooooooooooahhhhhh (General Chat) - Old Git, Oct 26, 15:09:36
    - I could have gone really tehnical on this one but held back. =) (General Chat) - mike_the_sphinx, Oct 26, 15:11:55
- your head falls off (n/m) (General Chat) - Steve in Holland, Oct 26, 15:02:59
- its head falls off (n/m) (General Chat) - duke of york, Oct 26, 15:02:09

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