Adsorption for the Clueless

Cellulose fibers, paper towel

One of the strangest notions among certain freelancers is the assumption that they can reword anything, whether or not they understand it, and create a (supposedly non-plagiarized) version that says the same thing as the original. Yeah, sure... if you believe that, then we have a liftside condo in Florida for sale. Apparently, however, music major Lauren Vork bought that concept, which may be why she thought she could explain "How Do Paper Towels Absorb?" for Sciencing.com (for unknown reasons, it used to be at Hunker).

Vork's "answer" is so old that it predates the DMS¹ requirement that contributors supply references for their statements, so we don't know where she came up with whatever she reworded for her answer. We do know that, whatever it was, Lauren didn't quite understand it. We say that because the process by which a paper towel absorbs water is, technically speaking, adsorption². That word does not appear anywhere in Vork's post.

On the other hand, Lauren has a lot to say about capillary action which, we are quick to point out, is closely related to adsorption. Vork's tenuous grasp on the science involved, however, is the main reason we're here today. As evidence we submit these claims:

"...the towel's supple shape and many tiny holes... create surface tension." "...by imitating [a] sponge's shape, the towel can have the same absorbent power..." "Capillary action is the small amount of elasticity that naturally occurs between molecules of water, holding them together." "...the liquid in each tiny space is kept separate from the liquid in other pores and pockets..." "...squeezing the towel breaks the surface tension of the pockets be [sic] compressing the spaces, forcing the liquid molecules to flow together and become weighted down by gravity."

The staff of the Antisocial Network submits the following corrections to Vork's notions:

1. Surface tension is a property of the liquid, not something created by the towel's porosity.
2. A paper towel does not imitate a sponge's "shape." To some extent, the internal structure of a towel is similar to the internal structure of a sponge.
3. Capillary action is not the cohesion of liquid molecules, it is the adhesion of the molecules to the walls of a space.
4. Sheesh.
5. We guess that's Vork's interpretation of "Expelling liquid from the pores allows the force of gravity to exceed the strength of the capillarity." Or something like that,

That's all she wrote, folks... but it was plenty for Lauren to snag her fourth Dumbass of the Day award.

¹ DMS is Demand Media Systems, now renamed Leaf Group
² Adsorption: the process by which a solid holds molecules of a gas, liquid, or solute as a thin film.

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