[ExI] Cephalization, proles--Where is government going?

[Rafal Smigrodzki]

On Thu, May 12, 2011 at 1:04 AM, Adrian Tymes <atymes at gmail.com> wrote:

>>> How about "no water, because it just dropped through the
>>> fractured rock, out of reach of all the wells and root systems
>>> the residents were relying on"
>>
>> ### Think about it: What is heavier, water or rock? If you crack rock
>> by injecting steam at immense pressure, with continued external
>> pressure applied, and then release the steam and gas, will you end up
>> with a sponge capable of absorbing water, or will the rock snap back
>> into compact layers?
>
> A sponge.  Happens all the time in canyons (this being how they
> are formed).  Water is very good at seeping into these cracks.

### You know the notion of the "water table"? Water cannot seep
*under* the water table, unless there is a convective process moving
is sideways and up, or if there is subduction (which is negligible
over non-geological timescales). Canyons are *above* water table,
water runs from precipitation over or through rocks until it reaches
the water table or surface water reservoir.

To help you to understand the notion, assume that there is a lake
under the ground, the water table. The way you can drain it is to find
a way for it to flow down. Fluffing up the bottom (=frakking) does not
usually change the water level unless you open a connection to a lower
stratum capable of absorbing water, and that is a quite rare
situation. You are talking then about the so-called "perched water
table", too uncommon to be an issue.

------------------

>
> And then there's the issue of what lies below the cracked rock, and
> how much water that can absorb.

### Generally, there is nothing there that can absorb water in any
appreciable amounts.

Rafal