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DARPA Develops Dolphin-like Tail For Divers
willatnewscientist writes "Forget flippers, the latest idea from the guys at DARPA is a tail-like prosthetic for divers. The (forward-facing) tail, demonstrated at DARPA Tech 2007, is designed to help a diver maintain a speed of 2 knots for up to 300 metres. 'The unpowered, carbon-fibre structure straps to a diver's shins and is used with a motion that is not unlike the way Patrick Duffy swims in The Man from Atlantis. The design is inspired by the way mammals like Seals and Dolphins swim. I caught this video of Powerswim (3.5 MB .avi) at the DARPATech 2007 gathering in Anaheim, California. It would be nice to grab one and try it out when I next head down to the beach, but unless its designers DEKA (the same people who make the Segway) come up with a budget version, the $500 price-tag is going to keep me firmly in my flippers.'"
No need to click and read the article. The summary *is* the article.
we just need some laser beams.
Lasers!!
I want to play Free Market with a drowning Libertarian.
According to The Register, the new fins will allow a diver to swim at a sustained 2 knots.
According to the first link returned by Google for "How fast can a great white swim": A great white's can swim about 20 knots -- in bursts. But, they usually swim around 1 or 2 knots.
So, the question is, who's got a better burst, a diver or a hungry shark? And who do you think can sustain that for longer?
Not too long ago, the Cincinatti Bengal's wide receiver Chad Johnson raced a horse. If anyone ever wants to race a shark, please let me know. I'm putting money on the shark.
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I'll let other people have at it--until they make it possible to not have a giant wing oscillate so close to my nuts. That stupid thing is a castration catastrophe waiting to happen. No thanks.
Constitutional rights may be respected, repealed, or modified; but they must never be ignored.
You don't need to outrun a shark, only the other guy who happens to be in the water nearby.
That's a hell of a distance over which to sustain that degree of acceleration. ;)
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