Why Are Your Christmas Light Bulbs Always Tangled, Even Though You Put Them Carefully in the Box?

Aristotle claimed that (on Earth) nature hates a vacuum but in the last 2,000 years science has evolved considerably so now we know that what nature hates is order (and mother nature does not go on Christmas leave). Even on holidays, the laws of physics can ruin our careful plans, writes IFL Science.

Take, for example, Christmas light bulbs. Did you put them back in the box carefully in January and when you unpack them in December what do you find? Knots!

You might think that Christmas elves had nothing to do and thought of giving you work. This scenario would be more preferable to the truth: the second law of thermodynamics has struck again!

This unavoidable law of physics (or is it?) Refers to a value known as entropy, which measures the disorder in a thermodynamic system.

Nervous about unpacking Christmas light bulbs? The laws of physics are to blame!

In an isolated system like our universe, entropy is always increasing. In other words, the systems are always moving towards chaos: things break down over time, we get older and the Christmas lights - even when they have been carefully packed - get tangled.

The theory of knotted strings when shaken was examined more closely in a 2007 study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The work entitled "Spontaneous Knots of a Restless Rope" brought the two authors, Dorian Raymer and Douglas Smith, the Ig Nobel Prize (awarded to the craziest, strangest, or most useless studies and scientific achievements) for Physics in 2008.

The two researchers examined what happens when you put a string in a box that is then rotated. They analyzed strings of different sizes, boxes of different sizes, and their different rotational speeds, as well as a different number of rotations.

In the 3,415 tests they performed, they found that the strings formed complex knots, sometimes within seconds.

The key factors are a minimum length of 46 centimeters and enough space to move inside the box.

If a cable has a metal wire inside - like traditional fir installations - then it can acquire a kind of "natural curvature," says scientific researcher Jay Miller.

This means that a thread that has been wrapped around a cylindrical spool, for example, will tend to retain this shape.

The Christmas installation if it gets tangled is harder to carry out.

In general, it is composed of several threads, and if it is tangled, yes, you will get on your knees and start untangling them.

Light bulbs, Christmas, and the rest of the universe

What is fascinating about this study is that, mathematically, the movements were not governed by a random process. Not only chaos was involved, but it played an important role in the formation of knots.

And the weird behavior of the strings in a box doesn't just explain why your Christmas light bulbs are always tangled.

It also has implications for rearranging the genetic material of certain viruses, explaining why the umbilical cord is not easily knotted.

So when you put the Christmas lights back in the box, remember the connection to the deep, complex, and mysterious laws that govern our universe.

What steps do you take to keep the Christmas installation from getting tangled up?

So what can be done? One option would be for manufacturers to remove the cord from a rigid but elastic material.

But the material would be expensive, which would lead to a higher price of the product.

Another option would be to buy a light cable with LEDs.

Perhaps the biggest breakthrough in recent years has been the proliferation of "rope lamp" LEDs that use LEDs built into the cable.

Of course, they can get tangled up like a garden hose, but it's easier to untie.

Another option would be to tighten the fir installation on a harder surface, as in the case of a thread, etc.

You should have more patience in gathering the fir tree and its ornaments than in decorating and unpacking it.

As you gather and store them, you will find them in the next holidays. And who will handle them?