The Columbus journal., 1886-05-05
STRANGE PHENOMENA.
The Temperature Upon Fishes n Upon
Men.

The Temperature Upon Fishes and Upon
A curious phenomenon 3 reported
from Smyrna, Florida, as occurring dur
ing the recent cold wave which destroyed
mangroves and oranges to an almost
unprecedented extent People are said
to have picked up quantities of fish that
were either dead or 50 stnpefed by the
cold as to float helpleesly. It would be
interesting to know whether these fish
wore really dead OF only lying IN a stato
Of torper. However this may be- The
occurrence suggests some Inquiries upon
the effect of temperature upon fishes in
their native element
A little reflection leads to the conciu-
sion that although the changes in the
temperature of large bodies OF water are
never 80 rapid OF SO wide in their range
a. tho chan es of the temperature In the
air Over them. the effect Of such changes
m abstracting heat from or imparting
heat to living or inanimate bodies must
be far greater In water than in ar.
The specific heat of air is only 0.238
that Of water, and a pint Of water weighs
nearly as much as IS cubic feet of air at
ordinary density. Hence a change OF
ono degree in tho temperature Of a pint
Of water represents as great an actual
beat change as a change of one degree
in about IS cubic feet of air. Both bodies
impart heat by contact in the same
manner. but by the immensely larger
volume capacity Of water for heat than
that possessed by air, the effect of con
tact Is very much more intense for a
given difference of temperature with
water than with air. Men or animals
can pass from air at a temperature OF
80 deg. Fab. INTO a body of air even be-
low the freezing point and remain for
short periods without feeling even dis
comfort. This is done almost hourly in
large breweries employing powerful re-
frigerating apparatus. and in large meat
refrigerating establishments. wherein
the temperature is maintained below 40
deg. Fah.: and the writer has often.
without even a coat. passed from a tenn
perature of overS 80 deg. Fab. into a room
where water was rapidly freezing. and
the temperature was not more than Is
deg. Fab. 1t is highly probable
that to enter water at 81 deg.
from a temperature Of so deg. or 50
deg. would either produce deSh or Sc
rious disorder to most kinds of warm
blooded animals. The shock il quite
severe, in very warm weather. from r
plunge into water ut Go deg. A gradral
change would. of course. be less severely
felt, but a plunge from air at 20 deg.
Fab. into water at 80 deg. Fab. by q
person having on the ordinary clothing.
and. for that reason having the
surface OF the body not cooler than
80 deg. Fab, would be more than any
weak constitution could sustain without
serious injury or ever danger.
Changes in the temperature Of water
in large masses, resulting from changes
in the temperature of the atmosphere.
IRE, from the nature of the two sub
stances very gradual, no matter how
violent The atmospheric change Il
seems, then. somewhat remarkable that
during the cold experienced in Florida
fishes should be killed. 1t is, however,
to be remembered that these fishes are
living substantially in tropical waters.
and that ice formed during the cold
wave, in small bodies of water, an inch
in thickness. The temperature of the
water from which the fishes were picked
up must, therefore, have approached
quite closely to the freezing point; and
there are many tropical fishes and
marine animals that would soon die
when exposed to such a temperature
Scientific american.