Beer Bubbles Really Do Sink

Galvatron writes "A group of researchers at Stanford have shown that, despite being lighter than the beer itself, bubbles can actually slide down the sides of glasses. So, if you see it happen, it's not just that you've had too much to drink. For a description of methodology and an explanation of why it works, see the article."

Oh come on

[Spruce Moose]

This story is just asking for a frosty piss joke to be made!

Re:Oh come on

[NonSequor]

I don't think the frosty piss thing can even be called a joke.

Pay no attention!

[Trejkaz]

The parent is just taking the piss.

Re:Oh come on

[WierdMichael]

This is NOT news, Scientific American did an entire article on it months ago. It's just a temperature-differential driven flow - the beer near the edge of the glass warms and rises. The beer in the center sinks. In stout, where this occurs. is thick enough, and the bubbles are small and long-lived enough to be carriied with the flow. It doesn't happen in Lagers or moth Ales, just Porters and Stouts

Re:Oh come on

[ElizabethP]

No. However, my ex's beer belches were traumatizing.

Re:Oh come on

[slotis]

i did ;)

sliding down the glass....

[timelady]

odd, I've seen many a drunk sliding down the side of a glass...those pesky bubbles!

Re:sliding down the glass....

[laptop006]

*thinks back to LCA 2004 conference dinner* (Rusty, Linus etc. all a *little* too drunk, this would be why I have an OpenBSD shirt signed by Linus)

Yeah, sounds about right.

Re:sliding down the glass....

[timelady]

hey, remember linus signed some pretty odd things during LCA:)

Re:sliding down the glass....

[Hogwash McFly]

hey, remember linus signed some pretty odd things during LCA:)

Yeah, my wife still refuses to wash her left breast....

Old story?

[ltning]

Wasn't there a story on /. a few years ago about someone researching why the bubbles in Guinness were apparently sinking - with the conclusion that they are driven down by streams closer to the centre of the glass?

Re:Old story?

[ltning]

Found it here [slashdot.org].

It's old :)

Re:Old story?

[ubera]

This one [slashdot.org]. The researchers here appear to be putting an academic imprimateur on the model discussed in 2000.

Re:Old story?

[exp(pi*sqrt(163))]

If you're going to use fancy terms like 'imprimatur' you should spell them correctly. It's straight from Latin so doesn't have the 'francisized' ending.

Re:Old story?

[halftrack]

Yes the very same science that they refer to in the article. Austrailian scientists with computer simulations. This however is the result of real-world experience and experiment. And they concluded the same.

Re:Old story?

[Jahf]

Interestingly, in Dublin drinking from a standard Guinness pint glass at a number of pubs, I never saw the bubbles do anything but rise to form a terrific head. I've only seen the downward bubbles in the Guinness pint (which is a pretty standard size and shape) in the States.

The Guinness in Dublin tasted better, too, and I'm not the only one that thinks so. The most common answer is that the Guinness in the States is brewed in the UK from inferior water and the Guinness in Dublin is brewed from a much bett

Re:Old story?

[drwho]

Interestingly, in Dublin drinking from a standard Guinness pint glass at a number of pubs, I never saw the bubbles do anything but rise to form a terrific head. I've only seen the downward bubbles in the Guinness pint (which is a pretty standard size and shape) in the States.

I highly doubt it. In the US and Australia, beer tends to be served much colder than the standard 55 F, which would cause a greater temperature difference between the outside air and the beer, and a greater temperature difference in

Re:Old story?

[NickFitz]

I think you'll find that the Guinness in the States (and in the UK) is pasteurised, while that in the Republic of Ireland is normally still live - like the difference between Watney's Red Barrel [orangecow.org] and a real ale. [camra.org.uk]

Whether I'm correct or not, I do know that virtually all the Guinness drunk in the UK is brewed at Park Royal in London, while the Republic of Ireland's Guinness is brewed in Dublin. The different waters would definitely have an effect on the flavour, although I doubt the water alone would make th

Re:Old story?

[Jahf]

Yeah, I know, the water causing bubbles to act differently was a long shot.

You're probably right about the Irish version not being pasteurized, and so much the better. It definitely had a better and less metallic (only way I know to describe it) taste. And if I got some free cultures from it, it definitely didn't hurt (I brew my own concoctions, so they would have had plenty of company).

Combination of lack of pasteurization and better water makes a lot of sense on the taste bit. Strangely the Coca-cola ta

Re:Old story?

[JoshRoss]

And there was also this [slashdot.org] one.

So

[riotstarter]

when you're high, can dogs really fly or is it just the weed?

Re:So

[Anonymous Coward]

Everything can fly, its the landing that's difficult.

Re:So

[DonnieD701]

It's not the landing that is difficult.. Most creatures just cannot handle the sudden stop at the end.. The stop normally brings on one of two conditions.. Concrete poisoning, or deceleration sickness..... BTW, first post...

Re:So

[sydb]

Welcome, but please note in future that the term 'first post' is reserved for the first post to a story, not an individual user's first post.

As for me, this is my 997th post. Three more posts and I kill myself.

Re:So

[Sqwubbsy]

Actually, the dog remains stationary, it's the rest of the planet that moves...

Re:So

[Moderation abuser]

No, they really can fly. Try it next time you're high, smuggle a dog up to the roof of your building and throw it off. It'll fly, you'll see.

Re:So

[caino59]

*note: no animals were harmed in the posting of this...uh..post.

Re:So

[yobbo]

Dogs can fly?

You really shouldn't believe a word they tell you.

Re:So

[Hobbex]

If dogs are flying, then that is not weed you are smoking... Tread carefully, but enjoy.

Re:So

[jcenters]

Sure dogs can fly. It's rather easy. All they have to do is fall and miss the ground!

Re:So

[Effofx]

I once had a German Shepard co-pilot for an American Airline flight I took to Hawaii.

Re:So

[Lord_Dweomer]

You think you can get those visuals with weed? Shit, get me a bag of what he's got.

Too much?

[Calren]

So, if you see it happen, it's not just that you've had too much to drink.

So do bubbles going around the glass mean I'm half-way there?

Re:Too much?

[SmackCrackandPot]

But are you North or South of the equator? That determines whether they go round clockwise or anti-clockwise.

Re:Too much?

[Calren]

Not exactly sure, I'll let you know when I sober up.

Nice article - but whatabout sharing the evidence?

[Jabes]

I have seen bubbles moving down at the edges of my Guinness. This latest "discovery" seems to be common sense to me, and is exactly how I have explained the phenomenem to other drinkers down the pub.

Shame I wasn't paid to do my "research", and that no-one would have listened to me because I didn't have a 750-frame-per-second video camera.

Now, this story would have been really interesting if it had a link to the videos of it happening 'cause it really is a sight to behold!

In Australia they also rise

[Anonymous Coward]

Of course it depends which way your head is up, or down - sometimes they go sideways in both directions.

Beer

[radiochild]

Not being a beer drinker I am not surprised, the bubbles are probably trying to drown themselves rather than taste that foul brew...

In other news..

[plams]

..women at the bar can really like you! If one of them is turned on by your presence it's not just that you've had too much to drink!

Re:In other news..

[mccalli]

If one of them is turned on by your presence it's not just that you've had too much to drink!

No. It's just that they've had too much to drink...

Cheers,
Ian

Our tax dollars...

[SisyphusShrugged]

Our tax dollars at work!

It appears that the same rib, in episode 34FGE, struck twice in row creates two different notes...are we supposed to believe this is some sort of magical rib!??!

Re:Our tax dollars...

[goatan]

Our tax dollars at work!

What's more this has been done 4 years ago [fluent.com] more here [straightdope.com]

Legitimate scientific value

[TobiasSodergren]

"While the pair's finding will be invaluable to barroom betters across the globe it also has legitimate scientific value in the area of fluidized beds, the mixing of solid particles with liquids and gases, which has industrial and engineering applications."

It's amazing what people do come up with to get an excuse for drinking beer.

Re:Legitimate scientific value

[betelgeuse-4]

Since this phenomenom only lasts for a short period after the beer is poured, they must have had to pour a lot of beers to allow detailed analysis. It would have been a shame to let it go to waste wouldn't it?

Next we'll see an academic doing a research paper on the marketing techniques used by pr0n sites.

Re:Legitimate scientific value

[TobiasSodergren]

I'd be really impressed if they manage raise money from investors for the research.

It might ofcoruse help to introduce the investors to the results of the beer discovery, empirically and with enough samples to be on the statistical safe side, before signing the contracts.

Re:Legitimate scientific value

[way2trivial]

Um, no problem to find, take a look for "white paper" "marketing pornography" site:edu [google.com]

apparently the winner in the "lets get sponsored to look at porn" contest was from the georgetown law review, it's titled "Marketing Pornography on the Information Superhighway: A Survey of 917,410 Images, Description, Short Stories, and Animations Downloaded 8.5 Million Times by Consumers in over 2000 Cities in Forty Countries, Provinces, and Territories." from around 1995! but I can't find a copy of the actual piec

Re:Legitimate scientific value

[daniel_yokomiso]

Already done [upenn.edu]

like convection currents

[obtuse]

This sounds analagous to the toroidal convection currents you get in heated fluids. In a small heated vessel, the hot middle goes up, and since the fluid on top cools and has to go somewhere, it goes down the sides to be heated again. In larger vessels, and depending on the characteristics of the fluid, you can get multiple toroidal cells.

In beer, it's fueled by bubbles, and bursting bubbles are the dumping of energy at the surface. Some small bubbles will get carried along down the sides by these currents

Gross-Legitimate scientific value

[mynameis (mother ...]

"legitimate scientific value in the area of

fluidized beds , the mixing of solid particles with liquids and gases ..."

So I'm the only person warped enough to have gross and immature thoughts about this passage??
Not that the first has ever happened to me [really, I SWEAR] but we all know someone...
And the second, while it could refer to 'praying to the goddess,' I'm pretty sure it's the gastro-intestinal penalty the following afternoon. [aka Ice-ass, keg-ass, da Beasties, etc.]

If you ever drank a l

Re:Legitimate scientific value

[HD Webdev]

It's amazing what people do come up with to get an excuse for drinking beer.

This might knock you off of a barstool: STUDY FINDS WOMEN WHO DRINK WAY MORE FUN TO STUDY [satirewire.com]

Bubbles in Beer in space

[Anonymous Coward]

I wonder what happens to bubbles in space, if they are trying to go downswards they sure are going to get confused?

Maybe they go inwards and congregate at the centre in a matey sort of way.

Re:Bubbles in Beer in space

[Patrik_AKA_RedX]

Doing research on beer in space. Hmm,is it me, or are you trying to make science more attractive to youngsters?

Now if only I got funding for my research on saturday night related activities.

Re:Bubbles in Beer in space

[Bush Pig]

I seem to remember a thought experiment along these lines described in one of my home brewing books (one of Charlie Papazian's books, iirc).

Wasted Tax Payers Dollars

[fozzmeister]

I'm not saying that this is not valuable information, however if only they had googled before hand they would have noticed that this WAS ALREADY KNOWN ABOUT IN 1998! see this story at http://www.sciencenet.org.uk/database/phys/liquids /p00053d.html

Re: Wasted Tax Payers Dollars

[bj8rn]

Well, the fact that beer bubbles sink was actually already known thousand of years ago. But it has to be "re-discovered" in every two years or so, otherwise the world would come to an end. And reporting this "discovery" in media is just a part of the ritual.

Re: Wasted Tax Payers Dollars

[Orne]

To be pedantic, during the middle ages the common thought was that the ancient cultures had learned everything there was to know, then the knowledge was lost with the fall of their cultures. The word " discover [webster.com]" is "dis-" (not) "cover" (as in hide) was coined to indicate that scientists were merely again finding what the golden age cultures had already found.

In this case, you have a liquid (beer) lightly saturated with gasses. Like crystals, the gasses collect on the impurities on the glass (notice when y

The camera...?

[jemnery]

I wanted to know more about the video camera after the throwaway line "750 frames per second" - wow!

Where's the video?

[Tweaker_Phreaker]

"So Andy got hold of a camera that takes 750 frames a second and recorded some rather gorgeous video clips of what was happening."

So quit hoggin' it and let us have some of that sweet sweet goodness.

Alcohol increases intelligence

[Anonymous Coward]

For any newbies: Apparantly your intelligence is increased by drinking alcohol, since it kills off your poor quality brain cells leaving more room for your high-powered brain cells.

So kids, if you want to pass your exams, sneak into Daddy's Spirits cabinet and have a swig before breakfast.

I knew it

[Anonymous Coward]

I knew I wasn't drunk!... nobody believed me! damn!

Time wasted?

[zaunuz]

People have been doing research for thousands of years, and most of the research have led to woudnerful discoveries, but.. to be honest, I cant see that this discovery can leed to any major breakthoughs. Not even minor ones.

Re:Time wasted?

[krymsin01]

You won't think that when you are imprisoned in a giant beer bubble and the only way to escape is to pop it on the toothpicks at the bottom of the glass.

Re:Time wasted?

[UnknowingFool]

I cant see that this discovery can leed to any major breakthoughs. Not even minor ones.

What these researchers have described is anomaly in gas-liquid mixing. In the field of chemical engineering, the mixing and flow properities of gas-liquid reactions are ongoing research subjects for the last several decades, particularly in fluidized bed reactors. Fluidized bed reactors [ornl.gov] are very important in the production of a wide variety of chemicals. While the test subject may have been fun for them to explore, it may hold clues into how gases and liquids mix in a reactor and this back-mixing may other researchers develop more accurate theories and simulations. These simulations then lead to better processes.

Neat.

[Ash87]

Now I have a new chat up line to use: hey babe, ever stop and think about bubbles moving down? Hello? You didn't finish your drink!

that was useless

[Anonymous Coward]

Ah maaaaan, crap!
that sucks!

Turns out I've stopped drinking for no reason after all...

got time to catch up with now.
bid day ahead...

Hmm...

[natrius]

I had a class with this professor earlier this year. This really explains his teaching style... he must have done his beer "research" each day right before he lectured...

Video report about it

[tsager]

There's a video about it here: video/mov,4MB [stanford.edu]
Mentioned in news article from [stanford.edu]

Re:Video report about it

[TMB]

Unfortunately the MPEG compression makes it almost impossible to actually see the bubbles! Guess I'm going to have to go "experiment" on my own! ;-)

[TMB]

aussie, aussie, aussie, ...

[next1]

.. conducted the study after Australian researchers announced in 1999 that they had made a computer model showing it was theoretically possible for beer bubbles to fall down the side of a glass

trust it to be australians that worked that one out first.
something tells me that experiment was most likely conducted on a friday nite after a few beers at the lab.

Never talk about beer on a Sunday!

[mgt]

Ouch, how smart is it to have an article about beer on a Sunday! ;)

Video of this man & glasses of foaming Guinnes

[supertsaar]

Right here [stanford.edu]

(Quicktime required)

Damn

[lars_boegild_thomsen]

Damn - I wish I had never seen this article. I've always used that observation as a definite measure when to stop drinking beer. Now I won't know when to stop. I'm sure this article has been sponsored by the breweries.

Re:Damn

[haggar]

I realize that your intent was to be funny, but if you don't know when to stop drinking, perhaps you shouldn't even start.

Re:Damn

[lars_boegild_thomsen]

Well - we all got our vices. And life would be pretty boring without them.

Re:Damn

[lars_boegild_thomsen]

But while we're at it. Someone should investigate why - some beers are bad - even within the same brand. I mean - you drink 9 and they are perfectly ok - and then all of a sudden no. 10 makes you sick. One would think in these hightech times they would have better quality control.

Re:Damn

[RadioTV]

Here is the advice I follow about when to stop -

"You're not drunk if you can lie on the floor without holding on." Dean Martin

Gravitational perpetuum mobile

[Archangle]

Just examine the effect and move it to macro scale, i.e. you drag lighter-than-air baloons down, pick them and release them up in normal conditions, creating energy (i.e. lifting small amounts of water up and releasing it onto a turbine). Free Energy! Of course there ain't no free lunch, but in this case it comes at cost of earth's rotation momentum, after several megawatts of energy produced our day will be some fraction of second longer.

Re:Gravitational perpetuum mobile

[and by]

I can only assume that you have been out trying to reproduce the experiment in the article.

Re:Gravitational perpetuum mobile

[Wonda]

sounds good!

days are much too short for me anyway :)

This is so obvious

[Pedrito]

I'm sorry, but it took scientists to figure out that it was caused by the flow of the beer from the bubbles rising in the center? I mean, I figured that out a long time ago just by looking. No 750 frame per second camera required. I don't even think I was sober when I figured it out. And this is news? Sorry, but I'm a bit disappointed.

A group of stanford researchers

[orbitalia]

ought to have better things to be doing than looking at bubbles in beer glasses dammit.

Sex education

[Gax]

"It's based on the idea of what goes up has to come down. In this case, the bubbles go up more easily in the center...than on the sides because of drag from the walls."

Is it just me, or is anyone else reminded of their sex education lessons?

I have no idea why they called it a "bubble" though.

Funding

[Anonymous Coward]

I wonder just how much time and money went into this research?

My solution

[Mantorp]

quickly turn the glass upside down over your mouth

hmph....

[enrico_suave]

We've got this beer bubble thing licked, but still no cure for cancer...

e.

Priorities, man!

[Chris Burke]

1. Beer.
2. Cure for Cancer.

Sounds about right to me. Without the former, the latter is pointless!

Re:Priorities, man!

[Hassman]

Where does profit fit in here?

Re:hmph....

[UserGoogol]

You are a wanker; you are a tosspot; you are a very tiny piece of turd.

Beer bubbles is one specific area of physics, curing Cancer is more of a biological field. (Figuring out how to prevent mutations in somatic cells, I guess, would be how you would manage it.) The two fields are entirely unrelated.

Re:hmph....

[booyah]

already working on it

beer has been shown to reduce and kill some early leisons that can be cancerous...

dark beers are the best at it :-) a guinness a day keeps the doctor away

http://www.phxnews.com/fullstory.php?article=98 4 6

as well as be a potentiel treatment for alzheimers
http://www.beerisgoodforyou.com/health /alzheimers. htm

an reducing the risk of heart disease

http://www.beerisgoodforyou.com/health/folate_in _b eer_may_protect_again.htm

As I watcch this video...

[Epistax]

I am reminded I am only 20 (and in the US), but that Guinness looks so good. I'm also in Massachusetts which appears to have the worst alcohol laws of any state I've been in.
People here are shocked when I talk about liquor sold in gas stations! (I'm from Maine, founder of prohibition in the US)

Re:As I watcch this video...

[smithmc]

Contrary to what you might have heard, the vast majority of us would rather have the beer.

unbelievable

[zaba]

Without further independent research that confirms this data, I won't believe it... As my contribution to mankind, I will be donating my time to this endeavor this afternoon, right after work... anyone else care to volunteer?

That's Interesting

[Tiado]

I wonder why that is, and since I hardly ever drink beer, I've never really observed the bubbles to see such a thing myself.

More information on beer and champagne bubbles

[sr180]

From Dr Karl Kruszelnicki.
Bubbles 1 [abc.net.au]
Bubbles 2 [abc.net.au]
Bubbles 3 [abc.net.au]