British TV Show 'Blackout' Triggers Online LOLs

hey stupid by Anonymous Coward · 2013-09-10 03:31 · Score: 5, Insightful

don't put power grids on the open internet. DUH.

Re:hey stupid by malacandrian · 2013-09-10 04:13 · Score: 1

How do you suggest the control room communicate with all the various power stations and electricity consumers across the country then?
Re:hey stupid by fridaynightsmoke · 2013-09-10 04:16 · Score: 5, Insightful

How do you suggest the control room communicate with all the various power stations and electricity consumers across the country then?
Perhaps, I don't know, they could piggyback a communication network onto the physical power network they own, airgapped from the internet? Maybe they could call each other on the phone like they did for the first ~80 years of the grid's existence?

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Re:hey stupid by The+Grim+Reefer · 2013-09-10 04:30 · Score: 1

How do you suggest the control room communicate with all the various power stations and electricity consumers across the country then?
Perhaps, I don't know, they could piggyback a communication network onto the physical power network they own, airgapped from the internet?
Yes, that would be perfect. No one would be able to connect in RJ45 to that network. Excuse me while I plug in my laptop to charge it so I can look up what type of connector would be needed... ;-)
Re:hey stupid by kernelistic · 2013-09-10 04:47 · Score: 1

Uh, no. GP wasn't talking about BPL (See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadband_over_power_lines ), but stringing fiber along the same poles when reconducturing is performed.
Re:hey stupid by UnknownSoldier · 2013-09-10 04:47 · Score: 1

And when the internet goes down/out what is your _backup_ control plan??
Re:hey stupid by Zcar · 2013-09-10 04:51 · Score: 2

Um, yes. Remember the Northeast US blackout a decade ago? Ultimately caused by the failure of one transmission line and the resulting rerouting of power over the grid?
They're all interconnected anyway, so a plant going out can have major effects on the grid as a whole.
Re:hey stupid by aaarrrgggh · 2013-09-10 04:54 · Score: 2

Woosh.
How exactly do you protect a network when its endpoints are in untrusted locations? It starts looking an awful lot like the internet.
Re:hey stupid by Jawnn · 2013-09-10 05:08 · Score: 3, Insightful

Do we really need to explain that a network need not be connected to the Internet to be, you know, a network?
Re:hey stupid by tnk1 · 2013-09-10 05:08 · Score: 1

What you say is true, although if you air-gapped this network from the Internet, you'd need to gain access to a node that is on that network in order to compromise it or physical access to the lines themselves. The network nodes will likely be in controlled locations, and even if they aren't, they're at least going to be local to the country running them.
Obviously, gaining physical access to the network cables would be much simpler than that, but you'd have to get resources on the ground locally to tap that cable. Not impossible, but if you can do that, you almost might as well just start blowing up transmission towers yourself.
If it is running over the Internet, you could (theoretically) gain access from anywhere including overseas without special effort.
Re:hey stupid by Anonymous Coward · 2013-09-10 05:18 · Score: 3, Informative

It appears that you are not taking the time to think through the problem that a power plants control center has.
> For the fine details of current usage the plant should just respond to voltage changes on the lines.
Yes the plant could tell how much power it is providing by monitoring the out put lines.
You think you know an algorithm that would provide the plant with the information on how to reliably and economically contribute to the power grid based only on the voltages of lines connect to the plant itself?
I suggest you consider a few unknowns from your air gaped power plant control center:
Grid topology is constantly changing with construction and maintenance outages.
Transmission line capacity, based on many things some of the larger factors including ambient temperature.
Costs for other plants to produce power, assuming you would be so kind as to only produce power when your plant is the cheapest.
And for the record there are monthly and weekly forecasts but the grid is run by much finer grained timescales.
Re:hey stupid by ciderbrew · 2013-09-10 05:23 · Score: 4, Funny

Porn mags
Re:hey stupid by Immerman · 2013-09-10 05:23 · Score: 1

And if fiber optic I believe it would be extremely difficult to tap into the lines discretely if designed to notice such attempts. You can't just "twist on" a tap like an electrical line, you pretty much have to sever the cable and splice in an optical junction. If there's a handshake signal every few milliseconds it would be extremely difficult to tap into the line without raising an alarm. Even more so if the signal was monitored for any power drops that would result from an attempt to graft on to a partially severed cable.

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Re:hey stupid by aaarrrgggh · 2013-09-10 05:24 · Score: 1

...which is why the "smart grid" is such a problem. Trusted devices in every home.
Re:hey stupid by Bigbutt · 2013-09-10 05:53 · Score: 2

That's why there are so many fiber cuts (backhoe outages).
[John]

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Re:hey stupid by Anonymous Coward · 2013-09-10 06:02 · Score: 1

That doesn't solve the problem of dumb people having access to twitter. Which is the point of this article, right? Or has slashdot turned into YouTube where the comments on any video always degenerate into rants about the government and the foreigners?
Re:hey stupid by m2shariy · 2013-09-10 06:05 · Score: 2

Back in the 80s my work was related to power generation. So I know that the local power grid had its own communication network, there was no internet in the area at the time. Worked just fine for them.
Re:hey stupid by HornWumpus · 2013-09-10 06:31 · Score: 1

Don't have a link handy. The spooks figured out how to tap fibers a good long time ago.
You bend them beyond spec and pick up the stray light with sensitive amplifiers. IIRC

--
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Re:hey stupid by lgw · 2013-09-10 07:11 · Score: 1

Tapping optical networks is very much "twist on". You just bend the cable enough so that a bit of light leaks out (after carefully stripping the jacket. There may even be off-the-shelf devices for this.
The whole point of "quantum encryption" is to solve the problem of how easy it is for a well-funded attacker to tap the optical cables in your datacenter without you ever noticing.

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Re:hey stupid by Mousit · 2013-09-10 07:51 · Score: 4, Informative

Speaking as someone currently working in the electrical utility industry, I can tell you how my company does it. We use a combination of things, depending on what's most cost-effective, but the vast majority of our communications are done via microwave relay. We actually set up our own towers, get FCC licenses, and transmit private microwave signals to our substations and to our satellite control centers, as well as our generation plants. Some of it is proprietary serial protocol (DNP, very common in the utility industry) and some of it is standard TCP/IP based.

We run multiple networks over these microwave links (which ARE isolated from each other both in microwave frequencies and in physical equipment), as our satellite offices also get corporate network connectivity and Internet connectivity via microwave as well, communicating to our HQ and using its Internet hardline.

For locations where we couldn't set up microwave, we sometimes use private leased lines (direct, always-on, no-dial telephone connections, but these we only use if we have to because they're the most expensive). On a few occasions we use spread-spectrum radio, or as an absolute last resort we use GPRS radio over mobile networks. This last solution is NOT the same network as what a cell phone or other consumer access point goes through. We are basically leasing access to their mobile tower for a "private line" more or less.

In ALL cases, whether it's microwave, radio, leased line, or anything else, over-the-air communications are end-to-end encrypted, because yes we're totally aware that OTA stuff can be intercepted and eavesdropped, even point-to-point microwave links. It is also a closed, air-gapped network. As I said, the Internet and corporate network stuff to our remote offices goes over its own separate microwave channel with separate air-gapped communications equipment that's independent of the equipment talking to substations and the like.

So that's how we suggest you do it.
Re:hey stupid by Obfuscant · 2013-09-10 08:17 · Score: 1

So that's how we suggest you do it.
How about sneaker-net using autonomous driverless cars? The latency would suck, but the bandwidth of a driverless stationwagon filled with 9-track^H^H^H^H^HDVD-ROMs would be huge.
Re:hey stupid by PhxBlue · 2013-09-10 09:18 · Score: 1

Airgapped intranet, if it's that damned important. Works pretty well for the DOD.

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Re:hey stupid by Darinbob · 2013-09-10 10:56 · Score: 1

Not true. Those devices are end points only and have no way to transmit any controls "up stream". These are reporting devices only. More problematic would be distributed automation devices (attached to transformers, capacitor banks, sub stations, etc). Those are much more secure (but very vulnerable to someone doing target practice, a constant problem).
The alternative? Send a truck out every time you need to do anything. Send a truck out every time you even want to read the current state of the line. Is the voltage too high or too low, are the phases out of balance? You won't know without sending out a truck to talk to the devices. Even without the smart grid the utilities already talk to these devices remotely. Many utiltities do not even know if there's a power outage in a neighborhood until multiple customers phone them up to inform them (need multiple customers because you can't afford to roll out a truck just because someone blew a fuse). There is a lot of wasted electricity because of the lack of information and automation.
Blackouts are more common without smart grids. Many blackouts come from a cascade effect and you can't respond to and counter that manually. You need automation to isolate the problem to a local area, and you can't do the automation without having the information and control that only a network provides.
And the smart grid really refers to the distribution network and local utilities. The transmission network is much better networked and has been for a longer period of time, from before anyone had the phrase "smart grid".
Re:hey stupid by xQx · 2013-09-10 11:01 · Score: 1

The same way the USA president is able to launch nuclear warheads from anywhere in the world without having to connect to the Internet.
Using that innovative and disruptive technology that Alexander Bell created.
You run a private network, then have a person stand in front of the controls that are connected to the private network, and you call them, verify your identity, then have them execute commands by your direction.
Re:hey stupid by Darinbob · 2013-09-10 11:02 · Score: 1

The article was basically some guy making snarky comments, and finding a mix of snarky tweets and silly tweets.
The whole thing sounds like a repeat of the after effects of "The Day After".
Re:hey stupid by Immerman · 2013-09-10 15:07 · Score: 1

Hmm, dang. I can see how that would work. And presumably you could insert your signal similarly with a high enough power source.

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Re:hey stupid by LordWabbit2 · 2013-09-10 18:53 · Score: 1

Use the grid itself
Power Line Communication
Although this would mean anyone could get onto it as well so not such a hot idea.
There's always satellite?

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Re:hey stupid by rioki · 2013-09-10 23:55 · Score: 1

How did they do all that before the internet? Oh yea... with dedicated data lines... You know they hat IT systems in the 70s and 80s that did just that, without internet. If you need pull cable, pulling an extra data line is no big deal. They used to also pull telephone lines before they had IT system. The current use of the internet is just an economical aspect, which quickly gets dwarfed when you realize the cost of business in an outage.
Re:hey stupid by Darinbob · 2013-09-11 06:13 · Score: 1

The home devices had never been networked before, even on a private network. They were read once a month, sometimes less than that if weather was bad.
As for distribution grids it may be because of economical reasons, but many utilities had no networking or easy monitoring of equipment at all. Maybe they had it for substations but that's a coarse amount of monitoring and control. I can walk around the street near work today and see transformers or capacitor banks that are not wired to anything with no antenna and still have a manual restore switch. It's not economical to string separate wires to every block in a city or town just to monitor equipment, which is why some of the new systems want to use power line communication and others want radio, because now they can keep track of much more equipment than before.
This is not only about outages. Voltage delivered to homes is important; if you deliver too much then it is a waste of power. Similarly if the three phase power is not balanced. You can't measure this from the substation, or from just one place in a neighborhood.
And none of this is the "internet". It's a private network, both before and after smart grid.
Re:hey stupid by cwsumner · 2013-09-12 11:01 · Score: 1

I used to work at the GE Power Line Carrier plant. The communications were not high bandwidth, but they were reliable. And you could find where the outages were by which lines wouldn't communicate.
There was also a newer type where the signal was automatically tuned to miss the harmonics of the noise, which was at multiples of the power frequency. Really slick and would work in bad noise.
As far as I know it is still being used a lot.
Connecting your control computers to the internet, is like connecting your drinking water lines to the sewer!... 8-}

insensitive by StripedCow · 2013-09-10 03:35 · Score: 1

The show terrified some viewers who apparently didn't realise that their TV screen was powered by the grid.

But... I have my own wind-power facility, you insensitive clod!

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Re:insensitive by Technician · 2013-09-10 08:24 · Score: 1

Is your wind power reliable? Much of the wind generation in the US won't operate when the grid is down.
Locally, I have two backup options, solar, and gas generator.
Is your critical system backed up?

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The truth shall set you free!

Fond memories of Threads by laejoh · 2013-09-10 03:36 · Score: 3, Interesting

In the eighties the BBC had http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Threads. It's on youtube, you won't enjoy it.

Re:Fond memories of Threads by polyp2000 · 2013-09-10 03:55 · Score: 2

I own this film on DVD and while it is a harrowing piece. If you are a into apocalyptic scenarios or were a teenager in the 80's this film is a must view IMHO!

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Re:Fond memories of Threads by rwise2112 · 2013-09-10 04:01 · Score: 4, Funny

so I can scare myself to death whenever I want.
Surely that only works once!

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"For every expert, there is an equal and opposite expert"
Re:Fond memories of Threads by Anonymous Coward · 2013-09-10 04:22 · Score: 1

Not sure if it would be more horrifying than 'The Day After'
The Day After is like Alice in Wonderland compared to Threads.
Re:Fond memories of Threads by polyp2000 · 2013-09-10 04:28 · Score: 1

It is - I own "The Day After" which is saccharine by comparison. Still a I like this film too!

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Re:Fond memories of Threads by Minwee · 2013-09-10 04:29 · Score: 1

I'm very surprised that civilization survived the 1980s.
Some people might argue that it didn't.
Re:Fond memories of Threads by rk · 2013-09-10 04:35 · Score: 1

Indeed.
Re:Fond memories of Threads by Immerman · 2013-09-10 05:37 · Score: 1

Rapid Resurrection Unlimited: "Near-death experiences are for the weak".

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Re:Fond memories of Threads by Ol+Biscuitbarrel · 2013-09-10 06:27 · Score: 1

One interesting factoid I learned from David E Hoffman's book The Dead Hand was that, according to Reagan's biography, the only time the Gipper mentioned being depressed in his diaries was after watching The Day After. Dunno if he or Iron Maggie caught Threads, that probably would have brought the whole Cold War to an abrupt stop. That flick is about as grim as can be imagined. Babby kom!
TDA really apparently did a number on Reagan, though - before that he was hawkish and then some, albeit realizing that a wind down of the Cold War in some fashion or another was essential; but afterwards he really began to take more of a direct approach to curtailing weapons stockpiles and the like.
Hoffman's book is highly recommended for its fright value, too - towards the end it has accounts from the late 90s of Russian weapons grade plutonium stockpiles being held behind doors sealed shut with "Civil War" class bolts and locks...
Re:Fond memories of Threads by MrNemesis · 2013-09-10 06:35 · Score: 3, Insightful

Just to chime in with a "me, too!" but The Day After is very much a Hollywood version of nuclear war. Threads (and to a lesser extent 1965's The War Game which inspired the structure of the film but was banned from being broadcast) is essentially some of the most harrowing TV you can put yourself through. If you like your post-apocalyptic stuff then despite its pitifully small budget Threads is hard to beat; just don't expect to feel too chipper afterwards.
It's might not be well known outside of the UK, but part of what made Threads so chilling was the fact that the documentary-style delivery was done partly with excerpts from Protect and Survive, a real PI film, just to show how ineffective and futile the advice being given out by the government would really be. I think the nearest US equivalent is Duck and Cover.
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Film/Threads
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protect_and_survive

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Re:Fond memories of Threads by cusco · 2013-09-10 06:56 · Score: 1

While researching "Germs" the authors found the largest abandoned ex-Soviet bio-warfare site secured with a rusty bicycle lock, guarded by one untrained part-time guy who hadn't been paid in six months. The 'tip' they gave him for letting them wander around the site was larger than his normal paycheck would have been.

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Re:Fond memories of Threads by dissy · 2013-09-10 10:56 · Score: 1

The Day After is rather tame compared to most other similar themed movies, including Threads.
In fact, The Day After is a walk through candy land with rainbows and sunshine compared to Threads specifically.
Both are awesome movies none the less.
For anyone interested:
The Day After - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2B7sdLPMfc
Threads - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MCbTvoNrAg
One comment specifically regarding Ronald Regan and the movie The Day After - The point of such movies is to show the futility and devastation caused by nuclear war, to show that anyone thinking such a war should even be a possibility - will end, at best, like the movies show, and probably much much worse.
Regan completely missed the point. Sure, he said we must avoid nuclear war at all costs, but he also did so by making sure we had a nuclear first and second strike capability (aka MAD)
This is not dissimilar to claiming that we must do everything in our power to prevent AI powered robots from taking over the world, and to assure they do not, we will build an AI powered robot army to prevent it from happening.
The mind truly boggles at the logic such people use. And Regan was far from the only one, on both sides of that war, and through out today.
It would be comical if it wasn't so damn sad.
Re:Fond memories of Threads by ultranova · 2013-09-10 12:39 · Score: 1

Regan completely missed the point. Sure, he said we must avoid nuclear war at all costs, but he also did so by making sure we had a nuclear first and second strike capability (aka MAD)
This is not dissimilar to claiming that we must do everything in our power to prevent AI powered robots from taking over the world, and to assure they do not, we will build an AI powered robot army to prevent it from happening.

Actually, it is completely different. In the case of AI overlords, none exists until you build them. In the case of nuclear weapons, both sides had an arsenal by the time Reagan came to power. At that point you either trust in the goodness of heart of the other side, or ensure they can't get away with starting anything. Which is a horrible trap to be in, but it's also not something you can solve by unilaterally lowering your guard because the temptation just might prove too much for your enemies to resist. It takes negotiation and a gradual, stepped retreat to go to something more sane.
After all, the United States had already proven that they were willing to use nukes to win a war when safe from return fire. Why would the Soviets be any less so? They certainly believed in their cause.

The mind truly boggles at the logic such people use.

But it shouldn't. It's the logic of a stalemated duel where both know that whoever gets shot first still has time to fire a perfectly aimed shot - but only if they keep their gun on their opponent. Thus neither can pull the trigger, nor can either lower their gun. It's the circumstances - the duel, or the Cold War - that are idiotic, not the people caught in them.

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Luddites. by Chas · 2013-09-10 03:36 · Score: 1

Can't live with them.
And they scream too loud when you feed them to the chipper-shredder.

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THANK GOD!!!

Re:Luddites. by i.r.id10t · 2013-09-10 03:44 · Score: 1

A true luddite wouldn't be watching the telly.
They are idiots (no relation).
These are the same people that freaked out when War of the Worlds was first broadcast....

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Re:Luddites. by Anonymous Coward · 2013-09-10 03:48 · Score: 1

The neighboring township to where I am is full of anti cell phone tower advocates. They managed to get the county's ordinances drafted in a way that makes it nearly impossible for any cell tower to be put in. They always cite the health risks of all things wireless.
I always find it amusing when they complain about their cell phone coverage and look for ways to add wireless to their houses.
Re:Luddites. by Tr3vin · 2013-09-10 03:49 · Score: 1

These are the same people that freaked out when War of the Worlds was first broadcast....
When did all of those elderly Americans move to Britain and start using twitter?
Re:Luddites. by HornWumpus · 2013-09-10 04:15 · Score: 3, Insightful

Even though it's much less satisfying, try feeding them into the chipper shredder head first.

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Re:Luddites. by gstoddart · 2013-09-10 04:20 · Score: 1

They are idiots (no relation).
These are the same people that freaked out when War of the Worlds was first broadcast....
You know, in fairness to the people who went into panic with War of the Worlds ... it was 1938, and people had no context for something like this.
Audiences weren't exactly sophisticated by our standards back then.
I've known people who were alive back then, and while I don't think any of them heard the original broadcast, they've mostly confirmed that most people simply didn't know enough to realize it wasn't true.
In 1938 in much of the world, broadcast radio was still something relatively new. And since it was presented as a series of news items, people believed it.
I believe essentially the same thing happend in the 80s with that Red Dawn movie -- since everyone was already in a state of fear we were going to get nuked by the Soviets, so people thought it was real.
Hell, given the chronic amber alert status, with a little planning you could probably whip up a lot of modern people into a panic. Because it has the effect of keeping people in a heightened state of fear.
Let's face it, if someone in NYC said a plane had crashed into a building, you would see some pretty widespread panic.

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Re:Luddites. by Culture20 · 2013-09-10 05:10 · Score: 1

No one believed or should have believed Red Dawn. It was clearly a work of fiction in a movie theater, not a television broadcast formatted like the nightly news (with the same talking heads as the real news covering the story).
Re:Luddites. by Darinbob · 2013-09-10 11:09 · Score: 1

The War of the Worlds reaction was overhyped by the media. This is more myth than reality. Sure a a lot of people called up the local police or television stations, but there wasn't widespread panic as the newspapers reported.
Re:Luddites. by Chas · 2013-09-10 16:55 · Score: 1

Now where's the fun in that?

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THANK GOD!!!

This is brilliant by techprophet · 2013-09-10 03:40 · Score: 2

Thank God for morons. I needed a laugh!

Kind of reminds me of a story... by Anonymous Coward · 2013-09-10 03:40 · Score: 5, Funny

The show terrified some viewers who apparently didn't realise that their TV screen was powered by the grid.

A friend of mine was getting ready to get in his car one day and noticed the neighbor woman was having an issue with her car. He stopped over and asked what was wrong and she said it wasn't doing anything when she turned the key. He tried and noticed she didn't have any dash lights or anything and explained that it may have been a dead battery. She said to him "I thought cars ran on gasoline?"

Re:Kind of reminds me of a story... by SJHillman · 2013-09-10 03:46 · Score: 4, Funny

I've encountered, on more than one occasion, people with the opposite misunderstanding. They don't think their cars will start because the power is out on their block. There's also a lot of people that don't realize corded phones will still work with no power (in most situations) - probably the biggest obstacle to VoIP adoption in my area.
Re:Kind of reminds me of a story... by bluefoxlucid · 2013-09-10 03:52 · Score: 2

Somebody wrote a TV show about how it's dangerous to light candles in the dark. I think we've obviated how stupid people are. Really... a TV show about how dangerous candles are?

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Re: Kind of reminds me of a story... by techprophet · 2013-09-10 03:58 · Score: 1

Not about how dangerous candles are, but how dangerous careless people are with candles.
Re: Kind of reminds me of a story... by jandrese · 2013-09-10 04:08 · Score: 1

I'm guessing the premise of the TV show is:
1. Power goes out
2. People light candles
3. Civilization burns down?

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I read the internet for the articles.
Re:Kind of reminds me of a story... by GoodNewsJimDotCom · 2013-09-10 04:32 · Score: 1

I remember the time my old 74 nova stalled in the middle of the road and I thought it was because my alternator was bad and my battery lost charge. Anyway a woman and her family pulled into her house. I yelled over,"Hey lady, I need a jump. Can you give me a jump start?" She hurried her family into the house, and my friend was dying of laughter.

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Re: Kind of reminds me of a story... by operagost · 2013-09-10 04:43 · Score: 1

Don't forget pointy knives! Those are too dangerous for the subjects.

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Re: Kind of reminds me of a story... by Megane · 2013-09-10 05:05 · Score: 5, Funny

But what about fresh fruit? What do I do if someone comes at me with a banana and I don't have a tiger to release at them?

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Re: Kind of reminds me of a story... by HCase · 2013-09-10 05:52 · Score: 2

You're being foolish. Tigers are released against enemies wielding raspberries. For the banana wielder though, a 16-ton weight has been shown to be effective.
Re: Kind of reminds me of a story... by bluefoxlucid · 2013-09-10 06:15 · Score: 1

People used to live in houses made of wood lit entirely by candles. Sconces and gas lighting are kind of new. Oil lanterns were a big thing for a really long time, and if you knock one of those over you have a problem; candles at least go out or not, oil spills and causes a huge blaze.

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Re: Kind of reminds me of a story... by HornWumpus · 2013-09-10 06:39 · Score: 1

Brings up a good question. Having banned long, sharp knives. When will the brits get around to banning 16-ton weights?

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Re: Kind of reminds me of a story... by fustakrakich · 2013-09-10 06:55 · Score: 1

Even if you had a tiger, it would be powerless against this rock I just bought from an eight year old girl (actually she's over 30 now, but she doesn't look it).

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Re: Kind of reminds me of a story... by TWiTfan · 2013-09-10 07:01 · Score: 1

Yeah, but people were tougher back then.

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Re: Kind of reminds me of a story... by Kittenman · 2013-09-10 07:22 · Score: 1

I'm guessing the premise of the TV show is: 1. Power goes out 2. People light candles 3. Civilization burns down?
Nightfall

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Re: Kind of reminds me of a story... by bluefoxlucid · 2013-09-10 07:42 · Score: 1

Tougher than a burning building?

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Re:Kind of reminds me of a story... by Valdrax · 2013-09-10 10:25 · Score: 1

Not that that's what the show is "about," but candle fires kill an average of 166 people in the US every year and injure about 1,289 more out of 15,260 reported candle fires every year.
It's a small number, but fire + irresponsibility = trouble.

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If it's for-profit but free, you're not the customer -- you're the product (e.g., the Slashdot Beta's "audience").
Re:Kind of reminds me of a story... by Darinbob · 2013-09-10 11:13 · Score: 1

Well ya, you get a bunch of yuppie TV writers and have them imagine all the awful things that might happen without power and this results. All the smart writers were probably all busy on better productions.
Re: Kind of reminds me of a story... by hotdiggity · 2013-09-10 15:06 · Score: 1

First, you make him drop the banana.
Then, you eat the banana!
You have now rendered him...'elpless!
(>6 hours and nobody delivered on this Monty Python setup. Sheesh.)
Re:Kind of reminds me of a story... by bluefoxlucid · 2013-09-10 23:48 · Score: 1

I want you to watch this video.
Now understand that this is 200 non-fatal burns out of 22 million people in Australia every year. Some folks watched this and went, "Oh my god! We need electric blankets instead, so dangerous!" Notice that there's over 5,000 fatal deaths from electric blanket failure in the UK every year--62 million people--which translates to about 1,600 potential fatalities in Australia based on population and assuming similar usage.
It's a small number, and not an alarming one. Making a TV special about how dangerous stuff like this is just gets the public to do even stupider things and wastes time and money.

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Re:Kind of reminds me of a story... by msk · 2013-09-11 00:36 · Score: 1

Which VoIP products don't require local power?
Re: Kind of reminds me of a story... by Anonymous Coward · 2013-09-11 01:12 · Score: 1

My grandfather walked through a burning building every morning to get to school.
Re: Kind of reminds me of a story... by eriqk · 2013-09-11 01:20 · Score: 1

How about pointed sticks?
Re:Kind of reminds me of a story... by SJHillman · 2013-09-11 02:39 · Score: 1

That's... the point? VoIP not working during power outages is an obstacle to VoIP adoption in my area (where power outages aren't uncommon). Therefore, people have been sticking with traditional phone service, which usually still works during a blackout.
Re:Kind of reminds me of a story... by msk · 2013-09-11 02:55 · Score: 1

I wasn't sure from your prior wording. Sorry.
Re:Kind of reminds me of a story... by Valdrax · 2013-09-11 04:20 · Score: 1

Making a TV special about how dangerous stuff like this is just gets the public to do even stupider things and wastes time and money.
Again, it's not like that what the show was "about." It was just a minor plot point. Are you seriously suggesting that TV should only be allowed to use more common tragedies for fear that people might overreact to minor ones?

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Re:Kind of reminds me of a story... by bluefoxlucid · 2013-09-11 05:04 · Score: 1

The show was silly enough, with a strong message about the dangers of lighting candles in such a situation

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Re:Kind of reminds me of a story... by Valdrax · 2013-09-11 05:41 · Score: 1

Your quote is from the Slashdot summary of a lame attempt at internet comedy that drastically exaggerated or essential made up other people stupidity for a cheap laugh. For example, the article also claims that people were fooled into thinking it was live television based on a couple of people commenting about it like an actual documentary (which isn't what you typically call live television). Since the show was a docu-drama that mixed fiction with actual footage shot mostly during the London riots, this wasn't exactly as unreasonable as the author's mockery would suggest.
So take anything else snarky said about the show from the same guy with a grain of salt. Most other reviews of the show don't even mention the candle fire, except for an off-handed mention in The Independent.

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Re:Kind of reminds me of a story... by Valdrax · 2013-09-11 05:53 · Score: 1

...or essential made up other people stupidity for a cheap laugh.
Gah. I really need to learn to proofread before submitting.

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Re:None of those tweets are funny by SJHillman · 2013-09-10 03:43 · Score: 4, Funny

Of course they're humorless. They would much rather have humour.

screw with their tv by roc97007 · 2013-09-10 03:47 · Score: 1

That'll get their attention.

--
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Re:screw with their tv by Megane · 2013-09-10 05:08 · Score: 1

I want to see the BBC come up with a drama where the world is taken over by television detector vans. (In Soviet Cardiff, telly detect YOU!)

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Re:screw with their tv by roc97007 · 2013-09-10 07:39 · Score: 1

I'd watch that. Although I'd probably have to illegally download it.
(But seriously, it reads like a mid-season episode of Doctor Who. Or Torchwood, back when it was, you know, good.)

--
Oliver's law of assumed responsibility: If you're seen fixing it, you will be blamed for breaking it.
Re:screw with their tv by roc97007 · 2013-09-10 07:50 · Score: 1

Um, we were talking about the British, but if you want to bring "the colonies" into it, there's lots of places that don't need no stinkin' air conditioning. There's more to the US than LA and New York.

--
Oliver's law of assumed responsibility: If you're seen fixing it, you will be blamed for breaking it.

People by Archangel+Michael · 2013-09-10 03:49 · Score: 1

The show terrified some viewers who apparently didn't realise that their TV screen was powered by the grid."

And ... these people vote .... usually for whomever tells the sweetest lies.

--
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Re:People by Minwee · 2013-09-10 04:31 · Score: 3, Funny

Knock knock.
Who's there?
To.
To who?
No, "To whom".
Re:People by Valdrax · 2013-09-10 10:30 · Score: 1

The show terrified some viewers who apparently didn't realise that their TV screen was powered by the grid."
And ... these people vote .... usually for whomever tells the sweetest lies.
Kind of like the one listed above. The two comments that the article painted as this were of people who thought it was a documentary (because of the use of documentary-style filming techniques and their own biases). No one he quoted said anything about believing it was live television, but hey if it feels good to feel smug and superior to stupid people, then it feels even better if they're even stupider, right? Pretty sweet lie to pander to that.

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If it's for-profit but free, you're not the customer -- you're the product (e.g., the Slashdot Beta's "audience").
Re:People by wasteoid · 2013-09-11 04:40 · Score: 1

+1 Funny

I liked it. by SuricouRaven · 2013-09-10 03:50 · Score: 5, Interesting

You need to adjust the time scale a bit - the drama showed the near-collapse of civilisation taking a matter of days.

And here come spoilers:

- One of the things I liked was the show of futility at the end. One of the characters, desperate for food and water for his child, resorts to looting a shop. He films and inventories everything, intending to repay once the crisis is over. Instead he finds another survivor huddling inside, one even more desperate and terrified than he is, who immediately goes into a confused panic and beats him to death - not because this unexpected lurker is trying to steal food himself, but because he is startled, paranoid and on a hair-trigger after the few days of hell he has just endured. The final shot of the scene is of the attacker's face as he realizes what he just did.

- The survival enthusiast, a prepper who treats the whole event with glee that his precautions were proven worthwhile, starts out by stockpiling water and checking food reserves - confident that he is ready. The drama here comes not from the survival efforts he takes, but how his family handle them. He's been irritating them for years with his 'freakish' behavior of keeping stockpiles, asking to move to the country and insisting on teaching them how to purify dirty water, and now he has a chance to shine. But far from becoming the hero he envisioned, his wife craves normalcy so much she can't stand his infuriating cheerfulness and efforts to help. She rejects all of his advice out of hand, tearing the family apart as all rationality is lost - even accusing him of poisoning their daughter with his home-sterilized water, and just shouting over him he explains he hasn't even opened that bottle yet. That's a family fight done well: There are two sides to the argument, and each one is incapable of even understanding why the other is upset.

This isn't a drama about the power cut. That's just a device. This is a drama about urban populations in crisis conditions, and it would be valid no matter what the crisis is - power cut, flooding, riots, collapse of government, even prolonged heavy snow. It's a story of human nature as sociary crumbles: Desperate, often irrational, the facade of morality gradually giving way to the simple instinctive need to protect one's self and one's family no matter the cost to others.

Re:I liked it. by fridaynightsmoke · 2013-09-10 04:11 · Score: 1

The middle-class survivalist, "generator man" as many have been calling him was the man who went to politely loot the supermarket at the end. And it was him who did the killing, climaxing at the moment the power came back on, with the now recording CCTV being shown capturing him at that moment with blood on his hands. Some noted the irony of capers and cous-cous being the only foods left there. It was a nice touch.
Er, yeah, 'spoiler alert' I guess :)

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Re:I liked it. by SuricouRaven · 2013-09-10 04:59 · Score: 1

Capers, cous-cous and dog food.
It was difficult to follow the fight, as it was shot in 'extreme shakeycam' form from the mobile phone POV. I probably misinterpreted the outcome.
What happened to Generator Man's wife? She seemed to disappear, probably around the point I left the room to make a cup of national-grid-heated tea.
Re:I liked it. by UnknownSoldier · 2013-09-10 04:59 · Score: 1

And/or how does it compare to Jerico? (2006)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0805663/
Re:I liked it. by fridaynightsmoke · 2013-09-10 07:10 · Score: 1

Capers, cous-cous and dog food.
It was difficult to follow the fight, as it was shot in 'extreme shakeycam' form from the mobile phone POV. I probably misinterpreted the outcome.
What happened to Generator Man's wife? She seemed to disappear, probably around the point I left the room to make a cup of national-grid-heated tea.
I would guess from her disappearance from the screen, the fact that he is with one child and the arguments leading up to that scene that she has gone elsewhere either temporarily or permanently. It's not made clear, although considering the only source of information we have is (according to the premise) footage shot by him, it wouldn't be.

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Re:I liked it. by Xyrus · 2013-09-10 13:33 · Score: 1

Civilization is a thin veneer of rationality on top of an ocean of viscous animalistic ugliness. It really doesn't take much. When people run out of water and food those lines of morality that hold people in check start getting mighty thin.
A quote I've heard more or less says that civilization is always 3 meals and 48 hours away from destruction. While the numbers may not be accurate, the sentiment is.

--
~X~

Re:None of those tweets are funny by SuricouRaven · 2013-09-10 03:52 · Score: 1

Our humour is different from your humor.

A lot of it is based around deliberate understatement and irony.

People tweet dumb things...news at 11 by Covalent · 2013-09-10 03:53 · Score: 1

But is it news for nerds? Really? Do you really think most of these comments are not sarcastic?

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Remember what George Carlin said by sandbagger · 2013-09-10 03:54 · Score: 2

Think about how dumb the average person is. Then realize that half the population is dumber than that.

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---- The above post was generated by the Turing Institute. Maybe.

Re:Remember what George Carlin said by Russ1642 · 2013-09-10 04:05 · Score: 4, Insightful

Half the population isn't dumber than the average. That's not what average means. (pun intended)
Re:Remember what George Carlin said by Anonymous Coward · 2013-09-10 04:12 · Score: 1

And they vote. AND their vote counts just as much as yours does.
Sleep well.
Re:Remember what George Carlin said by DeathToBill · 2013-09-10 04:20 · Score: 1

Oh, someone PLEASE mod this up.

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Re:Remember what George Carlin said by aardvarkjoe · 2013-09-10 05:15 · Score: 2

Half the population isn't dumber than the average. That's not what average means. (pun intended)
If intelligence follows a normal distribution (and the results of most intelligence tests, at least, tend to support that conclusion), then half of the population will be less intelligent than the mean.

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Re:Remember what George Carlin said by Russ1642 · 2013-09-10 05:30 · Score: 2

Intelligence measurements such as IQ can be arbitrarily calibrated to a normal distribution, at least near the center of the curve, because researchers don't really know any better and it seems to make life easier for them. However, there's no reason for the tails representing dumb people and very smart people to be equal in size other than trying to make the data fit an easy to analyze mathematical curve. But that's largely irrelevant, as the point I was making was that many people have a fundamental misunderstanding of the word 'average'.
Re:Remember what George Carlin said by aardvarkjoe · 2013-09-10 06:28 · Score: 1

However, there's no reason for the tails representing dumb people and very smart people to be equal in size other than trying to make the data fit an easy to analyze mathematical curve.
The number of people in those "tails" don't really matter, because there aren't enough of them to appreciably affect the average.

--

How can we continue to believe in a just universe and freedom to eat crackers if we have no ale?
Re:Remember what George Carlin said by Russ1642 · 2013-09-10 07:58 · Score: 2

IQ is forced to adhere to a normal distribution. In reality, 'intelligence' isn't normally distributed. Hardly any measure of a non-random phenomenon for a population will be normally distributed. Forcing IQ to a normal distribution is one of its critical flaws.
Re:Remember what George Carlin said by Paradigma11 · 2013-09-12 04:52 · Score: 1

Oh, many researchers do know better and there are theoretical models that are quite stringent and have metric properties:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rasch_model
see also
http://www.amazon.com/Foundations-Measurement-Volume-Representations-Mathematics/dp/0486453146
The problem is that you can then test if your measurement axioms hold and most likely they won't so why do it ;)

Oh... lord... by interval1066 · 2013-09-10 03:58 · Score: 1

The show terrified some viewers who apparently didn't realise that their TV screen was powered by the grid.

~sigh~

--
Python: 'And then suddenly you have a language which says "we're all stuck with whatever the whiniest coder wants".'

Who cares about battery life? by Russ1642 · 2013-09-10 04:00 · Score: 1

If the grid goes down, so do the cell towers. I didn't see the show but I'm guessing that mobile phones worked despite the blackout.

Re:Who cares about battery life? by SuricouRaven · 2013-09-10 04:07 · Score: 1

In the show, mobile phones worked initially as towers switched to backup batteries. They lost signal during day two as those batteries emptied.
Re:Who cares about battery life? by gsslay · 2013-09-10 04:11 · Score: 3, Informative

If the grid goes down the whole network goes down with it. Towers, exchanges, switches, relays, the lot.
Your phone would become a tiny tablet without any connection to anything. Not entirely useless, but not much use. Then the battery would go.
Re:Who cares about battery life? by james_shoemaker · 2013-09-10 04:21 · Score: 1

The cellular and phone networks in the US actually have batteries and generators to power them so people can use them when power is out to report those outages. For the POTS network I think the backup is federally mandated, not sure on the cell network.
Re:Who cares about battery life? by Ioldanach · 2013-09-10 04:49 · Score: 2

The cellular and phone networks in the US actually have batteries and generators to power them so people can use them when power is out to report those outages. For the POTS network I think the backup is federally mandated, not sure on the cell network.
The cellular backups only last for a day or two, at most. In the northeast we lost power from hurricane Sandy last year for a few days, and the cellular networks didn't last all that long. Fortunately, they're also high on the priority list for restoring power, so they were some of the first things to come back.
Re:Who cares about battery life? by aaarrrgggh · 2013-09-10 05:00 · Score: 1

Many only last 2-4 hours. Cell facilities with extremely high outage levels often use fuel cells as primary power with backup from the grid.
Re: Who cares about battery life? by tedleaf · 2013-09-10 07:20 · Score: 1

one of the reasons i and a few mates still keep our old full brick analog phones, in the uk with 5watts of output power, you can easily talk direct to someone 70-100 miles away, no towers needed, and with a decent solar cell and a 5kw multifuel generator, keeping the phones 12v battery charged is no problem, and having 8 large aircraft batteries in the bottom of the narrow boat gives about a months worth of power at least, the only thing i've not been able to source in 12 or 24 volt is the grow lights for the weed but a decent modern inverter sorts that, led's are useless. oh god, not the end of the world again. anyone else remember "edge of darkness"?
Re: Who cares about battery life? by Ambient+Sheep · 2013-09-10 08:12 · Score: 2

How does that work then, given that analogue (sic for the UK) ETACS phones were withdrawn in the UK on 31st May 2001?
Or are you talking about some kind of walkie-talkie thing?
Or are you just trolling?
Re:Who cares about battery life? by Richy_T · 2013-09-10 08:34 · Score: 1

The generator at the local cell tower ran all the way from 7pm on a Friday until nearly 6am on the monday (when someone finally turned up to switch it off) just as a data point.
Re:Who cares about battery life? by steelfood · 2013-09-10 09:37 · Score: 1

Your phone would become a tiny tablet without any connection to anything. Not entirely useless, but not much use.
It'd make a decent flashlight. And during a crisis, that'd be of mild importance.

--
"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be."

Re:LOL by glavenoid · 2013-09-10 04:00 · Score: 1

I don't really get what's happening here: so there was some British TV show and a bunch of people tweeted about it... and then what? Or is this supposed to be some kind tongue in cheek bit?

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Re:LOL by glavenoid · 2013-09-10 04:06 · Score: 3, Insightful

Al right, joke's on us. I just read the /. submission title again:

"British TV Show 'Blackout' Triggers Online LOLs"

STOP THE PRESSES! SOME SHOW TRIGGERS LOLS!! I can see timothy scrambling like a madman to get this thread out of the submission queue and onto the front page. This in the running for the most ridiculous title I've ever seen here, even worse then the gloriously daft "OMG PONIES LOL!!!"

--
I, for one, am looking forward to the inevitable /. beta rollout fallout.

This is a real case of blackout by w1zz4 · 2013-09-10 04:16 · Score: 1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackout_(broadcasting)

Re:Why is this even on Slashdot? by DeathToBill · 2013-09-10 04:17 · Score: 1

It's interesting to see the widespread sense-of-humour fail on /. this afternoon.

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From a script writer's imaginatoin by Anonymous Coward · 2013-09-10 04:19 · Score: 1

This is a drama about urban populations in crisis conditions, and it would be valid no matter what the crisis is - power cut, flooding, riots, collapse of government, even prolonged heavy snow. It's a story of human nature as sociary crumbles: Desperate, often irrational, the facade of morality gradually giving way to the simple instinctive need to protect one's self and one's family no matter the cost to others.

To state the obvious - It's fiction. Most people don't act that way.

See New Orleans during Katrina - or any other natural disaster or big power outages. Most people act civil and help one another out. Sure, there are a very small minority of people who will resort to acting like animals: looting, shooting at police helicopters, and other despicable behavior. But overall, all the millions of people who were effected acted like civilized human beings - nothing exciting.

Having people being rational doesn't make for good TV.

Re:From a script writer's imaginatoin by internerdj · 2013-09-10 04:29 · Score: 2

In the week that we lost power following the Alabama Tornado outbreak there were people driving around offering their food to strangers. The only acts of desparation were driving long distances to unaffected areas to purchase ice or generators. I'd say it would take a bit longer than a week for society to collapse in places that aren't already impoverished.
Re:From a script writer's imaginatoin by SuricouRaven · 2013-09-10 05:02 · Score: 2

I think it was inspired a lot by the London riots - a few days of fights and looting with no really apparent cause. What started as a minor police incident somehow lead to three days of chaos in the streets. It scared a lot of people simply for being so inexplicable and unexpected.
Re:From a script writer's imaginatoin by HornWumpus · 2013-09-10 06:44 · Score: 1

More or less. The dome certainly had a lower crime rate then the ninth ward did prior to the storm.

--
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Re:From a script writer's imaginatoin by Whorhay · 2013-09-10 06:59 · Score: 2

I also think it'd likely take more than a week. But you also have to remember that the tornados while devastating were rather tightly localized. If your entire country or the world is affected you'd likely see a much worse outcome. There wouldn't be any influx of aid workers and supplies from unaffected areas.
Re:From a script writer's imaginatoin by WuphonsReach · 2013-09-10 10:26 · Score: 1

Yeah, localized problems are survivable. Such as the impact of Sandy on the NYC area. Some areas were without power for 7-10 days, but you only had to travel 20-30 miles away to get relief.

The main advantage with Sandy was that we had 24-48 hours to prepare. Such as stocking up on a few packs of batteries, food that doesn't require cooking, setting aside a few pitchers of fresh water, etc.

It still sucked a bit by day 5. Got really hard to fill up your car's gasoline tank and I was running on fumes by day 7 and facing multi-hour waits at the pumps.

It was also early November, so temperatures dipped into the 40s each night.

--
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America also has "blackout" by slashmydots · 2013-09-10 04:24 · Score: 2

There's an American show called Blackout from 2012 where they take people extremely likely to freak out, put them in a pitch black room, and have them touch random things or find things or whatever. It has fake (and real) spiders and dogs and people and slime and is generally completely hilarious. It's all a game show so naturally it's timed and the fastest person wins.

Re: Overzealous and incorrect "whom"-ing by gstoddart · 2013-09-10 04:29 · Score: 1

Never use 'whom'. Simple rule that guarantees correct American English.

From whom did you get that advice? ;-)

There's an infinite number of ways in which American English can be done wrong without the use of the word whom.

--
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actual advice by slashmydots · 2013-09-10 04:37 · Score: 5, Interesting

Anyone read Hyundai's tweet? That's not far off, Hyundai. Last time the power was out for 3 days here due to a tornado, we hooked an 800W inverter up to our Chevy S10 and idled it like a generator for at least 20 hours to power our retail computers. Really, it can be any brand car though, lol. Generator = $a lot High wattage inverter = $100-ish USD + car you already have Also, 16 gallon gas tank in the car. What's up now, generator sellers? Lol.

Re:actual advice by aaarrrgggh · 2013-09-10 05:22 · Score: 1

It really depends on what your needs are, but running a 150HP truck engine at idle uses about 7-10x as much gas as a 2HP engine at 100% load, so your fuel storage is really only equivalent to 2 gallons. It's a good solution for a rare event of limited duration. Just sucks when you drain the fuel tank and can't get to the filling station... With diesels you also need to make sure you run the engine hard after doing it to burn off the wet-stacking.
With a 500W load and 2-3 outages a year, most places are best off with a 1 to 4-hour battery on-site and the ability to hook up a small portable generator. You size the generator big enough to re-charge the battery and support the load at the same time, and maybe big enough to throw the refrigerator on as well. Key is just to use it enough to make sure it works when you need it.
Re:actual advice by Anonymous Coward · 2013-09-10 05:32 · Score: 1

A Chevy S10 will have a half-decently sized alternator in it, though. Your average compact car has an alternator that's going to put out about 60 Amps. Assuming you turn everything off, you're still looking at at least 10 Amps to keep the basics running. 50 A * 13 V = 650 watts, and that's assuming absolute perfection in the inverter. More like 400 watts is what you can draw safely. Anything more and you'll drain the battery and/or burn out the alternator. You could keep the engine at high revs to increase the alternator output, but you'll burn through the gas quickly and may damage the car (eventually--assuming you're revving the shit out of it).
It's not a bad idea, but don't push your luck is what I'm trying to say. Check the output of your alternator before you get crazy with trying to power your house. My car has a 210 A alternator, so I'm good to power a full circuit. But I am certain no other car comes with such a large alternator stock.
Re:actual advice by ethanms · 2013-09-10 05:48 · Score: 1

That 100A is probably when the engine is turning somewhere near 1800-2200RPM or greater as well. At "idle" speeds, 600-700rpm, you might only receive 20-25A.
Prior to the insert of a "high idle" mode into the computers, police cruisers used to end up with dead batteries WHILE RUNNING because the power needed to run the on board lights, computer, radio, etc would be more than the alternator produced at standard idle.
My 3500W continuous generator, with a Honda small engine clone, was $275 on sale. It takes up less space than my gas lawn mower.
Re:actual advice by ethanms · 2013-09-10 05:50 · Score: 1

S10, even with the larger 4.3L engine, has the same 105A alternator used in most GM cars.
Re:actual advice by Actually,+I+do+RTFA · 2013-09-10 11:29 · Score: 1

Also, 16 gallon gas tank in the car.

Keep in mind automotive gas (and diesel) is more expensive then the dyed generator only stuff.

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Re:LOL by GTRacer · 2013-09-10 04:41 · Score: 1

What's the meaning of "Online LOLs" by the way?

Online Leagues of Legend, perhaps?

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Re: Overzealous and incorrect "whom"-ing by mcgrew · 2013-09-10 05:11 · Score: 1

Never use 'whom'. Simple rule that guarantees correct American English.

You and the guy who modded your offtopic, incorrect comment "insightful" should sue your educators for malpractice. "Who" vs "Whom" is simple: he who, him whom.

"Who did you get that from?"
"From whom did you get that?"

"From who did you get that" is NOT correct English in any English speaking country. Note that written English "ain't nothin' like talkin'".

--
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Obligatory... by Jawnn · 2013-09-10 05:13 · Score: 1

...Orson Wells reference. Just sayin'.

MLB sucks with there very old Blackout rules by Joe_Dragon · 2013-09-10 05:16 · Score: 1

I hope they lose that lawsuit

Re:Why is this even on Slashdot? by Hadlock · 2013-09-10 05:29 · Score: 1

DHS and FEMA are doing a drill in the middle of november regarding this exact subject. I think it's called Grid-X2 or something like that. They are not actually switching anything off though, it's just a glorified conference call.

There were some panic articles last month about FEMA ordering a bunch of food, medicine and ammo in preparation for the drill due on Oct 1st.

--
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nearly-airgapped by Immerman · 2013-09-10 05:34 · Score: 1

Even full automation would probably not be an issue if the control systems were heavily firewalled - i.e. no sort of network link, just a single unsigned number delivered via parallel port that indicates desired power output. No buffers to overrun, no data structures to exploit, just a single N-bit desired power indicator that gets read at regular intervals. Couple that with a post-firewall automated sanity check that requires human confirmation for any abnormal behaviors and you're pretty solidly insulated while having millisecond response times to normal load balancing commands.

--
--- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.

Re:Why is this even on Slashdot? by Thud457 · 2013-09-10 05:38 · Score: 4, Insightful

-1 we already have a way to deal with this sort of thing

if some of us lazy asses would mod the submission queue, maybe crap like this could be avoided.

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the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

Re:Culture differences by Jah-Wren+Ryel · 2013-09-10 05:56 · Score: 1

A prevailing attitude in Europe is with a decline of civilization, government, and social order, people will turn to animalistic barbarism within days.

No, it isn't cultural, other than a form of "elite panic" where the rich and powerful believe that society is only held together by the institutions that they themselves are in charge of. It is really self-fullfilling prophecy that tends to wreck the natural instinct of most humans to help each other in times of crisis.

Here's a taste of the problem:
http://boingboing.net/2013/04/14/elite-panic-why-rich-people-t.html

Some discussion of what did and did not happen in Haiti after the earthquake, by Slashdot's own Johnathan Katz:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/10/30/what-haiti-can-teach-us-about-the-storm.html

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When information is power, privacy is freedom.

Re:Wonder how GhostWatch would have done now? by Richy_T · 2013-09-10 08:38 · Score: 1

Great show. Showing its age a little last time I watched it though.

Power for TV by rossdee · 2013-09-10 09:56 · Score: 1

"viewers who apparently didn't realise that their TV screen was powered by the grid."

I have my TV plugged into the same UPS that the cable box/DVR uses - modern LED screens don't use a lot of power.

And who uses candles for emergency illumination these days? LED flashlights are cheap, small and powerful, the only time I don't have one on me is when I am in the shower.

Re:None of those tweets are funny by Darinbob · 2013-09-10 11:10 · Score: 1

So understated that discovering the joke takes tremendous effort, at which point the reader is too tired to laugh.

Re: Overzealous and incorrect "whom"-ing by porges · 2013-09-10 11:55 · Score: 1

Well, I'd say that "From who did you get that?" is still wrong, even with "whom" becoming less used. But "Who did you get that from?" -- which is the more-likely alternative -- sounds ok, vs "Whom did you get that from?", which I'd never say. (Which all runs into "don't end a sentence with a preposition", but that's another -- but related -- matter,)

Taking the power back. by Sait-kun · 2013-09-11 18:43 · Score: 1

Now we just need people to realize that power can be generated in other ways then fossil fuel or nuclear power.

We literally need to take back the power from the power companies.

First and foremost I believe that every person on this planet has the right to electrical power.
For this reason any use of patented technology for the sake of generating power should be open en free to everyone.

There are so many technologies with so much promise that are currently being held and exploited by corporations trough patents and unless you make a stand not only will they just happily trample over us having the power to shut us down unless you pay their ridiculous prices but unless we have the capability to generate and distribute our own power an total blackout is not just a possibility, it's a disaster waiting to happen.

The project taking shape in Colorado is a good example of some major steps forwards in bringing back the control to the people: http://neweracolorado.org/

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British TV Show 'Blackout' Triggers Online LOLs

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