Hopefully we are all using floss for it’s intended purpose daily-that is for the prevention of dental disease! However, we all have probably used floss for some other reason: generally as string when we can’t find any “normal” string around. I know I have.
I recently read in an article in TIME magazine (Feb 13/20, 2023-Vol.201, Nos 5&6) of an interesting alternative use of floss and by far the most technical! It seems that IBM uses it at their Quantum Computer Lab. This new generation of super computers must run at extremely low temperatures-less than 1 degree Kelvin. (Super, Super cold!) When a wire comes loose, or they need a short-term repair they use the floss to bind things together. Apparently unwaxed, unflavored floss remains very stable and un-brittle at these extremely low temperatures. I now feel much better about multi-tasking dental floss!
In the interest of transparency, I understood very little about the article beyond the floss and have no idea why a Quantum Supercomputer makes my almost new laptop seem like a mule at the Kentucky Derby! I do, however, understand floss and believe in it for it’s intended purpose……and then some.
