The Dresden Files > DF Reference Collection
This is why the Council is Afraid of Harry Dresden (Spoilers)
Quantus:
--- Quote from: Mr. Death on March 26, 2013, 04:41:25 PM ---It's kinetic energy when it's actually in motion. It's potential energy while it's being stored.
--- End quote ---
Potential energy is specific to energy stored via it's relative position in a system, due to some force field. This is most commonly gravity, in which the energy is related to the height of the object, but can also be in other force field like Electric or Magnetic, or microscopically within an object (the inter molecular forces of a compressed spring, for example). When released these can and usually do transform most of their energy into Kinetic energy as the field tries to return to a lower energy equilibrium state, though some can be lost in the form of heat , sound, etc.
The Rings charge by capturing the Kinetic Energy directly, somehow magically storing the momentum involved, and release it directly. They impart the energy into whatever objects are in the zone of fire, and that object finds itself moving without there being any of the normal other mechanism involved (yay Magic). Potential Energy isnt the only way to store or transmit Kinetic energy, it is just how it is usually done when you dont have magic to bypass the rules. It would be like assuming that Elaine's Lightning chain stores electricity through a chemical reaction, just because batteries are so common.
Also, in every description the rings are said to store "Kinetic Energy" from motion and emit a pure, magical Force effect. Saying they store Potential Energy is making an assumption on the "How" of it that we cannot be sure of.
wizard nelson:
Thats incredibly nitpicky and possibly wrong anyway :P I'm positive Harry uses the word potential atl once somewhere to describe the rings or their energy. Besides kinetic force stored in a ring isn't a scientific definition of potential in physics, but that is what it is, potential. Is the energy active? No. Is it inert? No. Can it be released from is current state as energy? Yes. Is there an active spell containing this energy? No. If you destroy the ring will all that potential energy be released? Probably. Since the energy isn't actively doing anything like flowing or dispersing its stored as potential. Magically yes, but how would real world physics definitions know you can store kinetic energy via magical 'spring'?
KrelianZG:
We know that in the DV, conservation of matter/energy still applies (though extended to the Nevernever, in some cases).
So, if we're dealing with MAGIC, I don't see why forms of energy shouldn't be interchangeable. We're already talking about forces that don't obey the laws of physics as we know them. Trying to apply standard Newtonian physics to magic rings seems kinda silly to me.
If you wanted to try to apply real physics to the DV, the energy Harry harnessed for his gravity spell at CI is astronomically large, for example.
Having a decent grasp of the math involved in this stuff, I'm very content to just say "it's magic". Otherwise, you'll drive yourself crazy trying to figure it all out :P.
chrnno:
That's one way of looking at it. Another is that since magic allows one sidestep the whole thing, the best analogy I thought in the minute since I read the post is that it is a like paper, ripping it apart is pretty easy but try holding the extremes and pull it...
Quantus:
--- Quote from: wizard nelson on March 27, 2013, 02:59:06 AM ---Thats incredibly nitpicky and possibly wrong anyway :P I'm positive Harry uses the word potential atl once somewhere to describe the rings or their energy. Besides kinetic force stored in a ring isn't a scientific definition of potential in physics, but that is what it is, potential. Is the energy active? No. Is it inert? No. Can it be released from is current state as energy? Yes. Is there an active spell containing this energy? No. If you destroy the ring will all that potential energy be released? Probably. Since the energy isn't actively doing anything like flowing or dispersing its stored as potential. Magically yes, but how would real world physics definitions know you can store kinetic energy via magical 'spring'?
--- End quote ---
OF course its Nitpicky ;) But not wrong, I ran a search on it. When describing the rings or their energy it is always either "kinetic energy" or later "Telekinetic Force." He refer to the ring's "Potential Energy" once in WN, but that is to describe the upgraded ring's energy capacity relative to the original, not characterizing the type of energy contained within them.
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