12 upvotes, 2 direct replies (showing 2)
View submission: xkcd: Quantum Vacuum Virtual Plasma
One way to think of it is in horsepower. One hp is 750W, so 20kW is the power of about 25 horses. That many horses pulling on a box should do a whole lot more than make it twitch.
Comment by aaronsherman at 06/08/2014 at 13:00 UTC
18 upvotes, 2 direct replies
That's not why this would be significant if true (it's very iffy, as explained by John Baez[1]). It would be significant because it's reactionless, which violates the laws of physics as we currently understand them. It would require rethinking motion and propulsion in ways that science has not had to for a very long time.
1: https://plus.google.com/117663015413546257905/posts/C7vx2G85kr4
Comment by OmegaVesko at 06/08/2014 at 11:04 UTC
4 upvotes, 1 direct replies
That many horses pulling on a box should do a whole lot more than make it twitch.
Well, in this context it's weird because the box was specifically designed to.. well, do nothing. It'd be like the wiring in your house starting to twitch when you ran power through it.