Talk:Hull (watercraft)
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"single most central" concept? I think that phrase needs attention, but I don't know what to change it to. --KQ
Do rafts and single logs not constitute hulls? Even if not, the distinction is artificial, and they deserve mention IMO.
Hmm, swamps, roaring streams, and even calm streams where sharp objects and ankle-twisting holes are hard to spot, are more safely crossed by walking on logs. So as long as water levels vary enough, you don't need be swept into a river and save yourself by grabbing a floating log to think of a floating log as something for a person to float on. (Perhaps floating a carcass across a water barrier on a log or raft is more innovative than personal transport by water.)
--Jerzy(t) 16:29, 2005 Feb 14 (UTC)
"Hull" is related to hell and concepts of hiding, and also means the outer layer of something. "Hollow" relates to "hole". So it is probably a linguistic coincidence that hulls, as floating structures, have to be hollow (to "trap ... air" -- not a very clearly stated concept, BTW, in the case of open boats) when made of heavier-than-water materials.
As to logs and rafts, the only reason that wood and foam are significantly lighter than water is is that both of them trap air in sealed capillaries or crevices, and in bubbles. They aren't "hulls" in being necessarily shell- or cowl-shaped, but they are hollow at a micro-scale.
--Jerzy(t) 16:45, 2005 Feb 14 (UTC)