[ExI] day 6

[spike at rainier66.com]

From: Mike Dougherty <msd001 at gmail.com> 
Subject: Re: [ExI] day 5

 

On Fri, Nov 14, 2025, 10:24 PM spike jones via extropy-chat <extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org <mailto:extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> > wrote:

This evening I went by, the ports had four ICE cars and five Teslas, no one charging.  As far as I know, this place has sold no electric power.

>…Given other news, my first thought on ICE was not 'internal combustion engine'

 

Oh OK cool thx, I hadn’t thought of that angle.

 

>…So now that I've written it out,  I wonder if there are external combustion engines…

 

Of course.  The old steam engines which powered locomotives in the olden days are external combustion.

 

>…  Are steam engines external combustion relative to the motive power of the steam pistons?

 

Ja, that is how I always heard it described.  

 

>…Does 'engine' automatically imply fuel consumption?

 

I think of it as an energy conversion device, or an entropy increaser.

 

>…So is it redundant or superfluous to specify "internal combustion" to discuss engine cars vs motor cars?

 

Henceforth I shall refer to fossil fuel burners as IC cars.

 

>…fwiw, there's no argument here as much as musing on the context/disambiguation of the term…

 

Mike I perceived the spirit of your inquiry and I already know you to be an affable and amicable sort, as I always strive to be.  Well done sir.

 

Update for day 6: I have been by there twice today, zero customers.  I have an idear however, which I shall share a little later today.  Idears are better than ideas, for reasons I shall likewise explain later, but now I gotta scoot forthwith.

 

spike

 

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