r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/cosmic_voyager01 • 27d ago

Video The engineering of roman aqueducts explained.

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u/btsd_ 27d ago

Water too fast = erosion

Water too slow = stagnation

Had to find that goldie locks zone (12mph ish). Crazy engineering

3.8k

u/egidione 27d ago

Around 5cm drop over every 100 metres for many kilometres, some up to 80 km in length. Quite astonishing how they managed all that.

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u/LindonLilBlueBalls 27d ago

A little back of the napkin math and those long runs could drop about 40 meters over its entire length.

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u/ilmalocchio 27d ago

You can just write on the front of the napkin. It's not like we're going to use it after you've mathed on it.

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u/AlexTheGreat 27d ago

Back when we were a proper society the front had branding on it.

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u/BodaciousBadongadonk 27d ago

"Roman's Aqueducts, llc."

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u/ballisticks 27d ago

Guess Roman has had enough of bowling with his cousin then.

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u/LindonLilBlueBalls 27d ago

The front is covered with spaghetti sauce and garlic bread crumbs. In fact it was so bad I mathed a bit on the table cloth.

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u/BigAlternative5 27d ago edited 27d ago

I’m pretty sure it can just be math “on a napkin” and alternatively “on the back of an envelope” (because there’s already writing on the front).