Hacker News Reader

Comment by toast0 | Hacker News Reader

Tin foil and aluminum foil do have generally different properties. For instance, tin foil can disrupt mind control and aluminum foil can't, and corrosion effects are likely at least different. But any thin metal foil isn't going to be able to hold much heat, because there's just not that much material.

View on HN

Ooooh! I get to share my favorite Stack Exchange answer!

https://physics.stackexchange.com/a/208520/82798

I do not think that you are correct.

"The thermal conductivity of aluminum is 237 W/mK, and that of tin is only 66.6 W/mK, so the thermal conductivity of aluminum foil is much better than that of tin foil. Due to its high thermal conductivity, aluminum foil is often used in cooking, for example, to wrap food to promote even heating and grilling, and to make heat sinks to facilitate rapid heat conduction and cooling."

https://www.chalcoaluminum.com/blog/aluminum-foil-tin-foil/

If it rounds to zero, then perhaps 4x'ing it won't make a difference?

Well, heat capacity and thermal conductivity are not the same thing

That’s the part of the comment you took issue with? Lol.

The things that you can measure are science.

The things that you can't measure are... not.

Well, I guess Germans are in for a nasty surprise since they call that garment an "Aluhut" in the respective circles where such things are required for street cred ...

The anti mind control tinfoil hat was invented in 1926 by SciFi author Julian Huxley, brother of Aldous.

> tin foil can disrupt mind control

You're not weaponizing Gell-Mann amnesia against us are you?

Not at all. Just doing my part to point out, whenever it's topical, that tin foil hats work and aluminum foil hats don't. There's a reason they want you to call aluminum foil by the wrong name.

Committed to the bit.

Kudos

Mind control waves are pure magnetic fields as opposed to traditional EM waves. So although aluminum can act as a Faraday cage, its not a magnetic shield and hence not capable of stopping mind control.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com