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Using Saran Wrap As A Polarizing Filter

Posted by timothy on from the now-shake-an-egg dept.

cdneng2 writes "Here's a University of Toronto research paper on how to use ordinary Saran Wrap as a polarized filter to turn your laptop into a stereoscope. From the paper, cellophane (costing mere pennies) proved to be a better half-waveplate than a commercial half-waveplate (costing hundreds of dollars for the required size) for rotating the polarization of white light. The same paper is cited in www.mygeekdom.com." Cellophane wonders may never cease.

34 of 52 comments (clear)

  1. Works on the John? by MakoStorm · · Score: 2, Funny
    By Wrapping this toilet I am not creating Mischief!!!

    I am simply filtering the available light to the water through this filter known as ordinary clear-wrap. This is a science experiment I expect Class credit for this!

    Boy, I wonder if that would have helped back then.

    1. Re:Works on the John? by Red+Rocket · · Score: 1


      It's hilarious that someone used a mod point to mod this comment down. I'm sure I speak for all the readers here when I say that we're all truly sorry that you (the modder) were traumatized by a toilet prank at some point in your life. Hopefully, one day you'll be able to read about toilet pranks without that burning urge to kill someone.

      --
      - Hail to our fearless misleader! Fool speed ahead!
  2. All right, this is cool by Henry+V+.009 · · Score: 2, Funny

    This is pretty neat stuff. Making 3D monitors using saranwrap is like starting nuclear fusion with old coffee grinds.

    1. Re:All right, this is cool by BrynM · · Score: 3, Funny
      Making 3D monitors using saranwrap is like starting nuclear fusion with old coffee grinds.
      It's just not good coffee unless it can melt the cup :)
      --
      US Democracy:The best person for the job (among These pre-selected choices...)
  3. Greatest Dupe Ever by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    I think what makes this dupe particularly amusing (poignant? telling?) is the fact that it links to the article it duplicates. Sheesh, don't these editors read anything?

    1. Re:Greatest Dupe Ever by isorox · · Score: 1

      Not only that, but timothy (not cdneng2) added the /. link, he must have done some work to find the dupe, then posted it. He si teh LAMEST!!

      Unless they needed the thousands of ad impressions an obvious dupe would generate.

    2. Re:Greatest Dupe Ever by Hell+O'World · · Score: 4, Funny

      I don't know what you guys are getting so worked up about.
      "Stereoscopic technique for generating 3D displays from cellophane and a laptop"
      doesn't sound anything like
      "how to use ordinary Saran Wrap as a polarized filter to turn your laptop into a stereoscope"
      to me! I mean... "polarized". Definantly some new information there, right?

    3. Re:Greatest Dupe Ever by Catskul · · Score: 1

      All hail Timothy, King of the Dupes !
      All hail Tim !
      All hail Tim !
      All hail Tim !

      (men in black reference)

      --

      Im not here now... Im out KILLING pepperoni
    4. Re:Greatest Dupe Ever by Molina+the+Bofh · · Score: 1, Funny

      I, for one, welcome our new Dupes Overlords.

      And I'd like to remind them, that as a trusted Slashdot reader, I can be useful in submitting more duplicate stories.

      --

      -
      Roses are #FF0000, Violets are #0000FF, find / -name '*base*' |xargs chown -R us && mv zig greatjustice
    5. Re:Greatest Dupe Ever by Abm0raz · · Score: 1

      Nah, it would be the greatest dupe ever if Timothy had also been the editor that posted the FIRST article, as well. Now that wouldn't bode well for an editor's competence level.

      -Ab

      --
      Nothing fails quite like prayer.
  4. Re:again... by RealityMogul · · Score: 4, Insightful

    So how does an editor manage to link to the original story on slashdot, which references the same article link, without realizing it's a duplicate?

  5. Who makes the first Quake2 for this? by mnmn · · Score: 1

    A bunch of laptops and cellophane should be cool here for FPS games. Quake2 should be ported I suppose faster than hl+counterstrike.

    But I'm curious how GTA1 would look on it, or even warcraft 3 characters.

    --
    "Give orange me give eat orange me eat orange give me eat orange give me you." -Nim Chimpsky
    1. Re:Who makes the first Quake2 for this? by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      Or, like the 3d glasses from elsa, they will simply work with D3D or OGL. Then you don't have to do ANYTHING to the apps; You just have to set your depth in the driver for different games.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  6. Cellophane != Saran Wrap by Datoyminaytah · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Cellophane != Saran Wrap

    --
    assert(birth_date<time-86400)
    1. Re:Cellophane != Saran Wrap by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative
      Lazy. Lazy.

      Here's some links. Cellophane is made from cellulose.

      While plastic wrap (aka Saran Wrap) is made from "plastics" like PE and PVC.

      Unlike many english names. These ones make some sence.

  7. Mirror from previous article by muirhead · · Score: 1

    Here's the mirror that tedtimmons posted last time.

  8. Dupe in 3D by jolshefsky · · Score: 5, Funny

    Dude, put the articles side-by-side and cross your eyes. You'll see it in 3D!

    --
    --- Jason Olshefsky

    Karma: Poser (mostly affected by adding this line long after everyone else did)

  9. We're Due by mugnyte · · Score: 3, Funny


    Mike Tyson, bite somebody. News is dry and we're repeating posts about polarization to effect 3D. Does anybody really want to sit with their eyes crossed for any period of time? To to see things in 3D? BTW, the rest of the world comes in 3D for free.

    mug

    1. Re:We're Due by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      Does anybody really want to sit with their eyes crossed for any period of time? To to see things in 3D? BTW, the rest of the world comes in 3D for free.

      Yeah, but it sues you when you touch it or stare too long.

      --
      Table-ized A.I.
  10. crosses your eyes by TheSHAD0W · · Score: 1

    Just a note: You're crossing your eyes when viewing an image of this sort. This may cause some amount of eyestrain. You may wish to move the display further away from you to help minimize this effect.

  11. Not Saran Wrap, CELLOPHANE by dvnelson72 · · Score: 3, Informative

    there is a difference.

    1. Re:Not Saran Wrap, CELLOPHANE by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

      Not likewise. Saran Wrap (aka plastic wrap) is not a trademark name for cellophane. It's a different substance. Pretty important to this article smart mouth.

  12. Just checking... by mcgroarty · · Score: 3, Funny

    Am I the only one who was worried that "Cellophane wonders" would be a not-safe-for-work link?

  13. Deja Moo??? by advocate_one · · Score: 1

    things must be slow at the moment... I'm sure I saw this just the other day... strangely enough it was in here...

    --
    Donald 'Duck' Dunn: We had a band powerful enough to turn goat piss into gasoline.
  14. Using saran wrap as a polar bear filter by psyconaut · · Score: 4, Funny

    (1) wrap yourself in saran warp
    (2) wait for polar bear
    (3) polar bear kills you
    (4) you stay fresh for weeks until polar bear is ready to finish consuming you
    (5) profit

    -psy

    1. Re:Using saran wrap as a polar bear filter by js7a · · Score: 1

      or alternativly, (1) wrap Roy Orbison in saran wrap.

  15. Re:again... by NanoGator · · Score: 1

    "Also cited on slashdot two weeks ago. "

    I wish cellophane would filter out posts whining about dupes.

    --
    "Derp de derp."
  16. Re:again... by Tom7 · · Score: 1

    And the posts whining about whining?

  17. the fact that this dupe exists by kaltkalt · · Score: 1

    cannot be attributed to incompetence as the original story was linked in the dupe, thus it must be malice.

    --

    Stupid people make stupid things profitable.
  18. This is bullshit by Obligato · · Score: 1

    You can get the exact same effect without the saran wrap or the glasses just by displaying the two images on the screen and crossing your eyes to superimpose them. You have to cross your eyes when using the saran wrap method anyway, so what is the advantage to putting the Saran wrap on?

    1. Re:This is bullshit by exp(pi*sqrt(163)) · · Score: 1
      Yup. I just tried it. I used some plastic wrap from Safeway and I actually found it easier just to cross my eyes. The plastic film as all sorts of irregularities in it making it hard to merge the two images as they are quite different.

      On the other hand it's kinda fun to just play with without trying to produce 3D effects.

      --
      Doesn't it make you feel good to know that our freedoms are protected by politicans, lawyers and journalists.
    2. Re:This is bullshit by exp(pi*sqrt(163)) · · Score: 1
      You clearly didn't read my comment.

      I said the whole polarization thing worked, silly! The problem is not with the polarization, it's with the direction your eyes have to look in. Normal polarized 3D displays have the left and right image superimposed on the display. In this case they are separated making them very hard to view even if the polarization works 100% perfectly.

      --
      Doesn't it make you feel good to know that our freedoms are protected by politicans, lawyers and journalists.
  19. Re:again... by WoTG · · Score: 1

    What? Why would anyone ever check the links? =)

    In the editor's defence, there's so much science jargon in this article, that with a cursory glance it's easy miss the fact that it's a dupe.

  20. while left blink right blink repeat by 3dvideo · · Score: 1

    forget the wrap.. just blink your eyes in sequence and voila 3D d

    --
    stereoscopic multimedia pioneer view3d.tv