Stolen from here: https://social.marxist.network/@yogthos/113583918563324620
Won’t homeless people just sleep on the ground now?
The bare ground is way colder than a bench, since air is a good thermal insulator.
Is that how that works? I’m not trying to be antagonistic or anything, I just heard the opposite is true when it comes to why bridges develop ice sooner than typical roadways do; because the ground holds more heat than the cold air does
The reason bridges form ice before roads is that they are exposed to cold air on all sides and have lower total thermal mass, so conduction from the bridge to the air allows the temperature of the bridge surface to drop faster. The ground has nearly infinite thermal mass, and it takes a long(er) time for ambient air temperature to affect the surface temperature.
When you say “the ground holds more heat” you’re talking about that thermal mass. The temperature of the air is colder than the temperature of the ground, so yes from that perspective it “holds more heat.” But the temperature of a human is much much higher than the ground, and conduction is an extremely effective way to pull heat out of a human.
Hi Jeremy, we’re aware your feet are bleeding while trying to catch a train, but homeless people were sleeping on the ground.
Jeremy’s at fault for not wearing proper shoes, of course.
Realistically, it would be little rebar studs sticking a few millimeters out of the concrete. Refer to them as traction devices and suddenly you are a hero.
