Namely, Tenchi Muyo in Love. At the end of the movie, the Tenchi gang have to set up 5 transmitters around the city and one on Tokyo Tower in order to defeat the super criminal Kain. Maybe Seattlites should be on the lookout for green spiky haired women who can fly and materialize energy swords.
If the body & limbs were made out of titanium or carbon fiber, we'd easily have enough strength/weight using hydraulics. Hydraulics are just murderously powerful.
EvanED, you're not *that* stupid. The real idiots would not realize they're wrong and keep arguing that the motor turns backwards when charging. Admitting you're wrong gets kudos from me.
Actually, if you hit a comet just as it was whizzing by at its closest approach to Earth, you'd probably reduce the chance of a piece getting knocked off and hitting the Earth to near zero -- for the 1st pass. That piece, in its subsequent orbits would have a better than average chance of hitting the Earth in a subsequent orbit.
It doesn't make it better to continue to post both crap and legitimate articles and to put "take it with a grain of salt" at the end. Whether or not Slashdot science links are snake oil or legit news seems to be random. Basically, not enough of the editors can tell the difference. Slashdot needs a qualified science editors!
I think the snake oil quip is just the *ss covering strategy of scientifically illiterate editors who were bitten when they *did* post something that was snake oil last time. Basically, they can't tell the difference.
A lot of this is due to an abysmal understanding of science in the general public. Without a grounding in real science and intellectual speculation, "Sci-Fi" just becomes another genre -- "Space Opry" as opposed to "Horse Opry." [misspelling deliberate] The heart of worthwhile Sci-Fi is intellectual, but we live in a technological society where it is cool to be anti-intellectual. Even on a "geek" discussion site like Slashdot! Make no mistake, "My OS is cooler than yours" pissing matches are anti-intellectual. (Intellectual Integrity) When you really care about the truth, you devote a lot of effort to trying to prove *yourself* wrong.
It's not so much that the genre is dead, but that much of the potential audience is brain-dead. Now waiting to be modded down to "Troll."
I think the guy with the article might need a bit of clueing too. To make the point that a part of India is very technically advanced, he calls it "the Taj Mahal of outsourcing."
The problem is when you try to use it in a car. Even in liquid form, hydrogen isn't terribly dense. This means that the tanks have to be larger to hold the same amount of energy. Also, you need more equipment to refrigerate cryogenic hydrogen. Additionally, the tanks have to be robust enough for safety concerns.
So, the energy density is high. Yet, it is still too low. So you get marks off for misreading. (I was clearly using LOW in a relative sense in my post, not an absolute sense.)
Because the CO2 was taken out of the atmosphere weeks ago, not brought out of the ground after having been sequestered there for millions of years.
And note that I didn't say "eliminate" dependence. Replacing all vehicular fuel usage with biodiesel would amount to almost 150 billion gallons of diesel we wouldn't have to derive from foreign oil. This would certainly do a lot to "alleviate" the situation, as I said.
So on both counts, you're wrong.
Cat converters and turbochargers would help with low-speed torque and particulate emissions, both of which are weak areas for diesel engines. (Hybrid drivetrains would be even better!)
If you were so concerned people would mistake his sentence for a joke, why not just come out and say "in case you think he's joking, biodiesel exhaust really does smell like that!"
Instead, you put intentions into other people's words that they didn't mean. Then when people clarify their position, you call them a troll -- while misspelling.
Or perhaps you didn't realize the relevance of a "catalytic converter" to the "french-fry" biodiesel smell. (Likely, we won't be able to eliminate the smell, which is arguably much better than conventional diesel, but I don't want to smell french fries *all* the time. Catalytic converters will be necessary to control emissions, which are better than normal diesel, though higher in NOx. Fortunately, the absence of sulphur makes this easier in certain respects.)
Yes, definitely research into better catalytic converters! Or, Stirling Cycle series hybrids! Since Stirling engines are external combustion, we can tailor conditions to acheive nearly complete combustion.
Hydrogen is a Boondoggle. The energy density is so low, that we might as well use batteries if we're going to power vehicles with it. (It may be good for stationary purposes.) If we really wanted to, we could convert all US vehicles to diesel, and run them all with Algae-Derived Biodiesel using sewage as a feedstock. Because of the greater efficiency of algae, supplying all of our vehicular needs is actually feasible.
This would alleviate both the global warming problem and our dependence on Middle-Eastern petroleum. The technology is available now, and because of the high energy density, no sacrifices on the part of automotive consumers are required in terms of range and performance. (We may need to invest in research into better catalytic converters and turbocharging technology.)
If you're going to depend on the pilot's sense of balance to place the feet in the right place, then you need force feedback to the limbs. If you're going to let the machine handle balance on its own, then you're building your own primitive version of Asimo. These are both valid, but I don't see this guy doing either of these.
Haptics aren't needed, but the technology is there, and can be used to leverage a human beings finely developed sense of kinematics and balance. Otherwise, you're rolling your own, and Honda's R&D team has just gotten the hang of running at 3.6 Mph after a few year's effort.
Actually, the Sarcos Large Arm uses hydraulics. In fact, only hydraulics are powerful and responsive enough for machinery like this.
Real science is better than demolition derby science any day. Instead of a couple of humanoid megasaurs lumbering around, imagine two giant robots nimble enough to do Kung-Fu! (Duking it out with giant clubs!)
He could do a simple model of the thing's center of gravity, and write a program to keep its feet under that. Then all he'd need is 1 orientation sensor and position sensors for all of the joints.
If you have a mech that's approaching 20 ft tall, then you can have a cockpit that allows a full range of motion for the pilot in a full-body haptic feedback harness. (See this site for a full-arm haptic harness.) Short of a direct neural interface, this is the only way you're going to provide force-feedback. If you don't have force-feedback, then you won't be able to control a bipedal humaniform robot well enough to do real combat.
But if you dispense with dynamic balance, then you can build mecha on tracks like these Japanese guys did for real! T-52
Slashdot Mirror
Don't forget the endlessly repeating recording. (The parent is a reference to Star Control 2.)
This Concrete was already jumping & bending (as well as winning the hearts of scantily clad hotties) in the 80's!
Namely, Tenchi Muyo in Love. At the end of the movie, the Tenchi gang have to set up 5 transmitters around the city and one on Tokyo Tower in order to defeat the super criminal Kain. Maybe Seattlites should be on the lookout for green spiky haired women who can fly and materialize energy swords.
"computer technology is fast enough to handle that processing but there is no high strength mechanical actuation systems that can."
Not true! Take a look at the movie of the "Large Dextrous Arm" holding a goddamn ANVIL like it was a mug of beer!
Movies
If the body & limbs were made out of titanium or carbon fiber, we'd easily have enough strength/weight using hydraulics. Hydraulics are just murderously powerful.
Posting this as a "good" April Fool's joke is just about the same as posting a "serious" story about a nanotech-based sticker that will improve your cell phone battery.
And yes, I'll agree. This doesn't even get up to the PHB level! Slashdot needs science editors with a clue!
EvanED, you're not *that* stupid. The real idiots would not realize they're wrong and keep arguing that the motor turns backwards when charging. Admitting you're wrong gets kudos from me.
Actually, if you hit a comet just as it was whizzing by at its closest approach to Earth, you'd probably reduce the chance of a piece getting knocked off and hitting the Earth to near zero -- for the 1st pass. That piece, in its subsequent orbits would have a better than average chance of hitting the Earth in a subsequent orbit.
It doesn't make it better to continue to post both crap and legitimate articles and to put "take it with a grain of salt" at the end. Whether or not Slashdot science links are snake oil or legit news seems to be random. Basically, not enough of the editors can tell the difference. Slashdot needs a qualified science editors!
I think the snake oil quip is just the *ss covering strategy of scientifically illiterate editors who were bitten when they *did* post something that was snake oil last time. Basically, they can't tell the difference.
These Folks!. And if the Apple Music vs. Apple Computer case is taken at a precedent, we can expect a settlement.
I also found this article vacuous at a Paris Hilton level. No exaggeration at all. Perhaps this was an attempt at humor?
This is an implementation of the unicycles from Venus Wars.
The cycles from the racing game at the beginning of the movie are a dead ringer for the Embrio, but I couldn't find pics of those.
A lot of this is due to an abysmal understanding of science in the general public. Without a grounding in real science and intellectual speculation, "Sci-Fi" just becomes another genre -- "Space Opry" as opposed to "Horse Opry." [misspelling deliberate] The heart of worthwhile Sci-Fi is intellectual, but we live in a technological society where it is cool to be anti-intellectual. Even on a "geek" discussion site like Slashdot! Make no mistake, "My OS is cooler than yours" pissing matches are anti-intellectual. (Intellectual Integrity) When you really care about the truth, you devote a lot of effort to trying to prove *yourself* wrong.
It's not so much that the genre is dead, but that much of the potential audience is brain-dead. Now waiting to be modded down to "Troll."
I hope it's not because of the espresso machines that can satisfy all your needs .
I think the guy with the article might need a bit of clueing too. To make the point that a part of India is very technically advanced, he calls it "the Taj Mahal of outsourcing."
The Taj Mahal is a TOMB!
The problem is when you try to use it in a car. Even in liquid form, hydrogen isn't terribly dense. This means that the tanks have to be larger to hold the same amount of energy. Also, you need more equipment to refrigerate cryogenic hydrogen. Additionally, the tanks have to be robust enough for safety concerns.
So, the energy density is high. Yet, it is still too low. So you get marks off for misreading. (I was clearly using LOW in a relative sense in my post, not an absolute sense.)
Because the CO2 was taken out of the atmosphere weeks ago, not brought out of the ground after having been sequestered there for millions of years.
And note that I didn't say "eliminate" dependence. Replacing all vehicular fuel usage with biodiesel would amount to almost 150 billion gallons of diesel we wouldn't have to derive from foreign oil. This would certainly do a lot to "alleviate" the situation, as I said.
So on both counts, you're wrong.
Cat converters and turbochargers would help with low-speed torque and particulate emissions, both of which are weak areas for diesel engines. (Hybrid drivetrains would be even better!)
If you were so concerned people would mistake his sentence for a joke, why not just come out and say "in case you think he's joking, biodiesel exhaust really does smell like that!"
Instead, you put intentions into other people's words that they didn't mean. Then when people clarify their position, you call them a troll -- while misspelling.
Or perhaps you didn't realize the relevance of a "catalytic converter" to the "french-fry" biodiesel smell. (Likely, we won't be able to eliminate the smell, which is arguably much better than conventional diesel, but I don't want to smell french fries *all* the time. Catalytic converters will be necessary to control emissions, which are better than normal diesel, though higher in NOx. Fortunately, the absence of sulphur makes this easier in certain respects.)
Yes I've smelled the biodiesel french-fry smell myself. I took his comment seriously. But maybe you were stretching things just to get your joke in.
Bonus: the exhaust smells like French fries.
Yes, definitely research into better catalytic converters! Or, Stirling Cycle series hybrids! Since Stirling engines are external combustion, we can tailor conditions to acheive nearly complete combustion.
Hydrogen is a Boondoggle. The energy density is so low, that we might as well use batteries if we're going to power vehicles with it. (It may be good for stationary purposes.) If we really wanted to, we could convert all US vehicles to diesel, and run them all with Algae-Derived Biodiesel using sewage as a feedstock. Because of the greater efficiency of algae, supplying all of our vehicular needs is actually feasible.
This would alleviate both the global warming problem and our dependence on Middle-Eastern petroleum. The technology is available now, and because of the high energy density, no sacrifices on the part of automotive consumers are required in terms of range and performance. (We may need to invest in research into better catalytic converters and turbocharging technology.)
If you're going to depend on the pilot's sense of balance to place the feet in the right place, then you need force feedback to the limbs. If you're going to let the machine handle balance on its own, then you're building your own primitive version of Asimo. These are both valid, but I don't see this guy doing either of these.
Haptics aren't needed, but the technology is there, and can be used to leverage a human beings finely developed sense of kinematics and balance. Otherwise, you're rolling your own, and Honda's R&D team has just gotten the hang of running at 3.6 Mph after a few year's effort.
Actually, the Sarcos Large Arm uses hydraulics. In fact, only hydraulics are powerful and responsive enough for machinery like this.
Real science is better than demolition derby science any day. Instead of a couple of humanoid megasaurs lumbering around, imagine two giant robots nimble enough to do Kung-Fu! (Duking it out with giant clubs!)
He could do a simple model of the thing's center of gravity, and write a program to keep its feet under that. Then all he'd need is 1 orientation sensor and position sensors for all of the joints.
I doubt he's going to get that far!
If you have a mech that's approaching 20 ft tall, then you can have a cockpit that allows a full range of motion for the pilot in a full-body haptic feedback harness. (See this site for a full-arm haptic harness.) Short of a direct neural interface, this is the only way you're going to provide force-feedback. If you don't have force-feedback, then you won't be able to control a bipedal humaniform robot well enough to do real combat.
But if you dispense with dynamic balance, then you can build mecha on tracks like these Japanese guys did for real! T-52