How are you dealing with the new TSA liquid Ban?

[Midnight Flyer]

How specific is the liquid ban? Does it state certain products, or is it generic about liquids?

Chickenhawk,

I personally havent heard anything on specific products yet.

I guess the only way around it for the time being is just to wear the uniform anytime traveling (jumpseating or whatever). The only other alternative is just to check the bag containing all your liquid items..."gasp":erm:
Personally, I come from the school of "don't check anything your not willing to part with."

 

[ackattacker]

Um, sorry but suspension isn't a state of matter.

neither is "gel" and that's banned.

A suspension is fine solid particles in a liquid matrix suspended by bouyancy.
A gel is a dense network of fine particles dispersed by water.

Both contain liquid and solid phases... suspension is a more accurate and precise description of toothpaste than "liquid" because liquid is by definition amorphous while toothpaste almost certainly will exhibit short range order (crystalline structure). Simply saying it's "liquid" because it flows is not enough... sand flows but is not liquid.

But what do I know?

 

[Alamanach]

A suspension is fine solid particles in a liquid matrix suspended by bouyancy.
A gel is a dense network of fine particles dispersed by water.

Both contain liquid and solid phases... suspension is a more accurate and precise description of toothpaste than "liquid" because liquid is by definition amorphous while toothpaste almost certainly will exhibit short range order (crystalline structure). Simply saying it's "liquid" because it flows is not enough... sand flows but is not liquid.

How short range is short range? I ask because vicinal water comes to mind, and I can't imagine anybody identifying that as anything other than a liquid.

I'm not familiar enough with the composition of toothpaste to say anything about its being a suspension. Though given that it is so, I can see how "suspension" would be more precise. I cannot see how it would also be more accurate, so perhaps you could explain that to me.

Could toothpaste be a colloid?

 

[ackattacker]

How short range is short range? I ask because vicinal water comes to mind, and I can't imagine anybody identifying that as anything other than a liquid.

I'm not familiar enough with the composition of toothpaste to say anything about its being a suspension. Though given that it is so, I can see how "suspension" would be more precise. I cannot see how it would also be more accurate, so perhaps you could explain that to me.

Could toothpaste be a colloid?

I was talking a little tounge in cheek... it's a bit of a silly discussion outside of scientific circles. But you do raise a valid point, how much order is required to be a crystalline vs. amorphous? Some materials blur the line, particularly when you are talking about thins films such as vapor deposited silicon. "Liquid crystal" displays are another. But generally speaking a crystalline material will generate sharp diffraction peaks on a x-ray diffractometer while an amorphous material will not. Toothpaste is not one of the examples that "blur the line", it is a suspension that contains distinct phases of clearly crystalline materials such as baking soda (calcium carbonate) and abrasives.

In chemistry the terms "suspension" and "colloid" or "colloidal dispersion" are generally interchangeable. So yes, toothpaste is a colloid.

I said suspension was more "precise" than liquid because it's the more narrow definition. It's also more "accurate" because describing toothpaste as a liquid is not actually accurate at all. It contains liquid, to be sure, but then so do you and I.

 

[Alamanach]

Cool.

 

[great cornholio]

Has anyone tried commuting in street clothes? You'd think if they trusted a crew badge enough to let you through security they'd let you carry toothpaste.

If you are in street clothes you have to throw your stuff away or check your bag. They are pretty strict about only having uniformed crew memembers exempt from the rule. So basically in uniform your toothpaste is not dangerous if you change into street clothes your toothpaste just became a "weapon of mass destruction"

 

[WGP guy]

neither is "gel" and that's banned.

A suspension is fine solid particles in a liquid matrix suspended by bouyancy.
A gel is a dense network of fine particles dispersed by water.

Both contain liquid and solid phases... suspension is a more accurate and precise description of toothpaste than "liquid" because liquid is by definition amorphous while toothpaste almost certainly will exhibit short range order (crystalline structure). Simply saying it's "liquid" because it flows is not enough... sand flows but is not liquid.

But what do I know?

But sand has a definate shape, meaning a solid. The compound (maybe mixture, I can't remember) toothpaste as a whole conforms to the shape of its container, no matter how slowly this happens, it still does. That means it is a liquid, not a gas, not a solid, not plasma.