Elliptical oil drops

Sounds like someone's spoofing Jobst because he would surely know about Thetic rings. Phil Brown

Quoted message said:

I've interviewed bicyclists far and wide and never found anyone who has ever seen an elliptical
oil ring on the road, much less someone who had any idea of how they get there. They are thin
elliptical rings with a major to minor diameter of about pi:1 and between 20mm and 200mm long, the
long axis in line with traffic.

There WILL be a quiz!

Where do you find them and how are they made?

Jobst Brandt [email hidden]

They're made by comets. Hyperbolic rings are rarer.
--
Ron Hardin [email hidden]

On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.

Phil Brown said:

Sounds like someone's spoofing Jobst because he would surely know about Thetic rings.

The headers match. Unless somebody gained access to Jobst's computer, it was Jobst.

Google doesn't know anything about Thetic rings. What are they, and how do they end up on the road?

Quoted message said:

Phil Brown

--
Rick Onanian

Elliptical chainrings. From the 1930s, I believe. If you can find a copy of Delong, he mentions
them there.

Nick

"Rick Onanian" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Google doesn't know anything about Thetic rings. What are they, and how do they end up on
the road?

Nick Payne said:

Elliptical chainrings. From the 1930s, I believe. If you can find a copy of Delong, he mentions
them there.

Eliptical chainrings were certainly around in the 1970s, because a friend of mine who did pursuit
(fixed wheel) racing had one. 'Biopace' rings (which I liked hugely, and still have on my rigid hill
bike) were around in the 1980s, and while not exactly elliptical, had the same basic idea. I have no
information wrt elliptical oil spots.

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) jasmine.org.uk~simonOpen ↗

'Victories are not solutions.' ;; John Hume, Northern Irish politician, on Radio Scotland
1/2/95 ;; Nobel Peace Prize laureate 1998; few have deserved it so much

may have said:

I've interviewed bicyclists far and wide and never found anyone who has ever seen an elliptical oil
ring on the road, much less someone who had any idea of how they get there. They are thin
elliptical rings with a major to minor diameter of about pi:1 and between 20mm and 200mm long, the
long axis in line with traffic.

There WILL be a quiz!

Where do you find them and how are they made?

Sounds like an oil or grease spot got elongated by being run over by a tire. An impact by an oil
drop, no matter what it's approach angle, will always produce a circular spot, but as a wheel rolls
across a spot, anything on the surface will tend to get rolled out.

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail. Yes, I have a killfile. If I
don't respond to something, it's also possible that I'm busy.

Quoted message said:

I've interviewed bicyclists far and wide and never found anyone who has ever seen an elliptical
oil ring on the road, much less someone who had any idea of how they get there. They are thin
elliptical rings with a major to minor diameter of about pi:1 and between 20mm and 200mm long, the
long axis in line with traffic.

There WILL be a quiz!

Where do you find them and how are they made?

You have piqued my interest - I will keep my eyes open for them.

--
R.

<> Richard Brockie "Categorical statements <> The tall blond one. always cause trouble." <>
[email hidden]

In <[email hidden]>, Rick Onanian <[email hidden]> opined:

Quoted message said:

Google doesn't know anything about Thetic rings. What are they, and how do they end up on
the road?

Google groups does, and Phil was kidding.

Jobst, was there a Nobel prize associated with the answer?

--
Dave Salovesh [email hidden]

jobst (the face that lunched a thousand cranks) brandt said:

I've interviewed bicyclists far and wide and never found anyone who has ever seen an elliptical oil
ring on the road, much less someone who had any idea of how they get there. They are thin
elliptical rings with a major to minor diameter of about pi:1 and between 20mm and 200mm long, the
long axis in line with traffic.

There WILL be a quiz!

Where do you find them and how are they made?

Male Answer Syndrome has its finest hour:

They'd be found around intersections with a stop light or sign. Vehicles accelerating away from the
stop may sometimes dribble a series of oil drops onto the roadway. An inclined road probably
enhances the incidence of oil spills. Drops that are close enough together will merge as the oil
disperses and is absorbed into the road surface. Those linearly conjoined drops then behave as one
(trying to spread out in a circle), which causes it to assume an elliptical shape.

-------------------------------
John Dacey Business Cycles, Miami, Florida Now in our twenty-first year. Our catalog of track
equipment: eighth year online. businesscycles.combusinesscycles.comOpen ↗
-------------------------------

Werehatrack may have said:

may have said:

I've interviewed bicyclists far and wide and never found anyone who has ever seen an elliptical
oil ring on the road, much less someone who had any idea of how they get there. They are thin
elliptical rings with a major to minor diameter of about pi:1 and between 20mm and 200mm long, the
long axis in line with traffic.

There WILL be a quiz!

Where do you find them and how are they made?

Sounds like an oil or grease spot got elongated by being run over by a tire. An impact by an oil
drop, no matter what it's approach angle, will always produce a circular spot, but as a wheel rolls
across a spot, anything on the surface will tend to get rolled out.

If it's an open ring, I'd further postulate that the edges accumulated contaminants from the surface
which formed a more stable and durable conglomerate, and the center's liquids then got washed away
or tracked away. I've noticed that when certain things get tracked around in the house, after the
first few steps, the image that's being left is a ring instead of a spot. (And since the SO is
housekeeping-impaired, I'm more often the one who gets to clean it up.) (Yes, with power tools.)

This is just a SWAG.

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail. Yes, I have a killfile. If I
don't respond to something, it's also possible that I'm busy.

Dave Salovesh said:

Quoted message said:

Google doesn't know anything about Thetic rings.

Quoted message said:

Google groups does, and Phil was kidding.

I searched groups.google.com with "thetic rings" and only got this thread.

If I do it without the quotes, I get loads of threads not related to this -- mostly, thetic being
part of the word 'pathethic'.

Care to provide a URL?

My head will explode, littering the newsgroup with brains and blood if nobody tells me what thetic
rings are... 😉

--
Rick Onanian

Rick Onanian said:

My head will explode, littering the newsgroup with brains and blood if nobody tells me what thetic
rings are... 😉

Nevermind. I re-read earlier messages in this thread and found that somebody already told me what
they are, I just didn't understand.

They are oval chainrings sold under the Thetic name a long time ago.

--
Rick Onanian

Werehatrack said:

Sounds like an oil or grease spot got elongated by being run over by a tire. An impact by an oil
drop, no matter what it's approach angle, will always produce a circular spot,

Why is that? I just tried this in my basement and had no trouble making elongated spots.

Quoted message said:

but as a wheel rolls across a spot, anything on the surface will tend to get rolled out.

Even the barrel....

--
Ray Heindl (remove the X to reply)

Werehatrack said:

If it's an open ring, I'd further postulate that the edges accumulated contaminants from the
surface which formed a more stable and durable conglomerate, and the center's liquids then got
washed away or tracked away. I've noticed that when certain things get tracked around in the
house, after the first few steps, the image that's being left is a ring instead of a spot. (And
since the SO is housekeeping-impaired, I'm more often the one who gets to clean it up.) (Yes, with
power tools.)

This is just a SWAG.

Maybe it's related to the rings left when spilled coffee evaporates. Surface tension pulls the
suspended particles to the edge of the spot as it evaporates, so most of the particles end up
at the edge.

--
Ray Heindl (remove the X to reply)

Werehatrack who? said:

Quoted message said:

I've interviewed bicyclists far and wide and never found anyone who has ever seen an elliptical
oil ring on the road, much less someone who had any idea of how they get there. They are thin
elliptical rings with a major to minor diameter of about pi:1 and between 20mm and 200mm long,
the long axis in line with traffic.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

There WILL be a quiz!

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Where do you find them and how are they made?

Quoted message said:

Sounds like an oil or grease spot got elongated by being run over by a tire. An impact by an oil
drop, no matter what it's approach angle, will always produce a circular spot, but as a wheel
rolls across a spot, anything on the surface will tend to get rolled out.

These are "RINGS" not solid spots. However your description fits chewing gum, also a substance that
few bicyclists see. Oil on the spots on a road do not get stretched by passing tires.

Jobst Brandt [email hidden]

Dave Salovesh said:

Quoted message said:

Google doesn't know anything about Thetic rings. What are they, and how do they end up on
the road?

Quoted message said:

Google groups does, and Phil was kidding.

Quoted message said:

Jobst, was there a Nobel prize associated with the answer?

There might have been had someone analyzed this years ago, however the mechanism for them was
understood before there were cars.

Oops, that was a clue, but then you knew that already.

Jobst Brandt [email hidden]

John Dacey said:

Quoted message said:

I've interviewed bicyclists far and wide and never found anyone who has ever seen an elliptical
oil ring on the road, much less someone who had any idea of how they get there. They are thin
elliptical rings with a major to minor diameter of about pi:1 and between 20mm and 200mm long,
the long axis in line with traffic.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

There WILL be a quiz!

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Where do you find them and how are they made?

Quoted message said:

Male Answer Syndrome has its finest hour:

Quoted message said:

They'd be found around intersections with a stop light or sign. Vehicles accelerating away from
the stop may sometimes dribble a series of oil drops onto the roadway. An inclined road probably
enhances the incidence of oil spills. Drops that are close enough together will merge as the oil
disperses and is absorbed into the road surface. Those linearly conjoined drops then behave as one
(trying to spread out in a circle), which causes it to assume an elliptical shape.

I'm glad you prefaced that with a suitable comment. Yes that is a wonderful answer... but no
cigar. Bong.

Jobst Brandt [email hidden]

may have said:

Werehatrack who? said:

Quoted message said:

I've interviewed bicyclists far and wide and never found anyone who has ever seen an elliptical
oil ring on the road, much less someone who had any idea of how they get there. They are thin
elliptical rings with a major to minor diameter of about pi:1 and between 20mm and 200mm long,
the long axis in line with traffic.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

There WILL be a quiz!

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Where do you find them and how are they made?

Quoted message said:

Sounds like an oil or grease spot got elongated by being run over by a tire. An impact by an oil
drop, no matter what it's approach angle, will always produce a circular spot, but as a wheel
rolls across a spot, anything on the surface will tend to get rolled out.

These are "RINGS" not solid spots. However your description fits chewing gum, also a substance that
few bicyclists see. Oil on the spots on a road do not get stretched by passing tires.

Grease does.

Now that I think about it, I've seen elliptical oil spots on the road around here.

For rings, though, I still lean towards an edge effect followed by a washout of the still-liquid
center. Or deposition of the sploosh from hydraulically ejected substrate through a hole in the
paving during a rain, as the vehicle tires spread it down from the hole.

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail. Yes, I have a killfile. If I
don't respond to something, it's also possible that I'm busy.

may have said:

Where do you find them and how are they made?

One more guess, and I'm giving up.

On hard surfaces under oak trees in the spring, when the sap has just begun to run, and the drops
from winter bark breaks hit the damp surface during the night and spread into rings. Round if the
surface is perfectly flat and regular, elliptical if it's inclined or irregular at all.

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail. Yes, I have a killfile. If I
don't respond to something, it's also possible that I'm busy.