Chill Winston...
The last few days have been so damn hot that I finally went on the internet to find out just how hot it really was. As of 7:00 PM it was still 34 degrees Celsius (stinkin’ hot, Fahrenheit). Now, that’s not so bad for the middle of a desert, but I think the 56% humidity might have something to do with the drenching, life-force draining atmosphere of the last few days. After all, everyone and their dog will tell you that “It’s not the heat… it’s the humidity.” This maxim is so prevalent that it has completely obliterated “It’s not heavy… just awkward” in the Annual Clichéd Adage competition. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if I complained of the heat to an aborigine in the depth of the Australian Outback and he replied, “It’s not the heat… it’s the humidity,” and then proceeded to spread the message across the hills via didgeridoo (I am pleasantly surprised, however, that didgeridoo is in the MS Word dictionary; Crocodile Dundee be proud.).
Anyway, what quite confused me about this Internet weather report was that although the temperature was clearly given as 34 degrees, a little further down, the temperature was adjusted to 40 degrees with Wind Chill. Come again? Wind Chill?
Explain that one to me.
posted by The Artsaypunk @ 5:44 PM
3 comments
3 Comments:
Wind chill works both ways. iF it is hotter out there you are the wind takes away your "cool heat" quicker, so the "hotter" wind makes the actual temp. seem hotter.
Jeezz Dave this not like you,
SD
Just another one of those western egocentricities, I guess. Some weatherman from New England probably invented the term.
When has wind ever made it hotter in Boston?
If someone knows, please don't tell me, it was supposed to be rhetorical ...
Steven (SD), that is by far one of the worst explanations I have seen on any topic. It doesn't help that it seems like you left out a few words along the way.
In any case, the Wind Chill was developed in Canada (surprise, sursprise) and is virtually unknown outside of North America. If you think about it, it's a strange concept, effectively trying to develop a formula to scientifically define how cold a human "feels." No wonder the rest of the world thinks we're ice-bound when we advertise temperatures of -50.
Interestingly, the humidex index was also invented in Canada. We sure love our virtual temperatures.
Anyway, the point is, that anything that raises the assumed temperature cannot be a "Chill." If they had labeled the column "Apparent Temperature" that would be fine, but one would still assume that to be based on the humidity index.
One of the things that makes the Karachi heat bearable is that the evenings are generally very pleasant, with breezes coming in over the ocean.
Although I have experienced "hot" winds in Karachi that come from the inland deserts, they still generally have a cooling effect as far as persperation evaporation goes. And even ole Wikipidia states that "the wind chill temperature is always lower than the air temperature, because any wind increases the rate at which moisture evaporates from the skin and carries heat away from the body."
And now that I've paid you much more attention than you are due, as I'm sure was your intention, please ensure that you have plenty of beer being "chilled" for my return.
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