Otis' original safety brake used a toothed track running down the walls of the shaft on each side. The cable was attached to the lift via levers operating on a pair of dogs which were designed to engage with the toothed tracks and stop the lift. The cable tension held the dogs clear of the ratchet.
Otis demonstrated the system in public by cutting the cable (actually a more easily-cut rope, for demonstration purposes) while he was in the lift. As soon as the cable tension failed, the dogs sprang out, engaged the shaft and Otis only dropped a few inches. Of course, modern systems use different safety devices, but the original Otis one would not work with a maglev drive.
I don't have power steering, ABS, airbags, traction control, power windows, power mirrors or even a heated rear window. But then I learned to drive before cars had all this stuff. The car is a poverty-spec '97 Mazda MX-5, by the way, something most/. readers will know as the Miata.
The insurance companies aren't screwing you (or at least, no more than anyone else). They use actuarial tables which show the average younger driver, or any driver with no clean driving history, is several times more likely to have an accident.
Now I was never a particularly aggressive driver (and the only accident I ever caused was when I reversed into a concrete pillar) but I can safely say that in 19 years of driving I leave a lot more space in front and anticipate other drivers' bad behaviour better than I used to. Hell, when I was 25 in a little 988cc car I used to drive a section of country lane in about half the time that I would risk it now - in a car with 2.5x the power. It's all about testosterone and perceived invincibility.
I have two words for you: "arms race". When everyone's driving SUVs, no-one will be any safer (in fact, probably less so, since many accidents don't involve another vehicle). And I'm sorry, a man in an SUV always makes me think of the rednecks in "Bob's Country Bunker".
There ain't many cars of only 0.8 tons these days. Most superminis are a ton now, and an average European family car is getting on for 1.5 tons (why is EVERY new model bigger than its predecessor?). Fsck knows what the average mass of an average "American" family car (Toyota Camry?) is, but it's got to be well over 1.5 tons.
Isn't it beautiful, incidentally, how 1 metric tonne is almost exactly the same as an Imperial ton?
It must be l33t-speak, using the two plus signs to form an "H". That makes it "CH0x", so when it goes gold they can put out a press release saying "CH0x Away!".
Or maybe they're just a bunch of inveterate geeks, who knows.
I await the self-righteous frothings of the tabloid press over this one, because we often forget that while it's a hanging offence to wear a baseball cap or drop litter, it's perfectly OK as a middle class taxpayer to race on the public roads and mow down the occasional lower lifeform (pedestrians, cyclists, horse riders, etc).
There is a way to avoid speeding fines and points; it's called controlling the right foot.
I've not heard of anyone actually being forced to pay a fine because their car was "cloned" in this way. You just write and tell the authorities that it wasn't you and it's also possible to apply to the DVLA for a new registration mark.
The reason plates are being stolen is that the new controls on supplying plates (ID, proof of entitlement to the registration such as the registration document) makes it slightly more difficult to have cloned plates made up. Of course, anyone in the trade can still knock up a set when no-one is looking, but since all the blanks have to carry the manufacturer's name, it can be traced back to their employer.
If you're really worried, use pop rivets, tamper-proof screws, or stick-on plates.
Agreed. I used to buy Quantum until Maxtor ate them. Now it's happened again. Supposedly there is no profit in hard drives (unless you're EMC^2, sticking hundreds of them together in a frame and selling it for 100x the price per GB).
Slashdot Mirror
Otis demonstrated the system in public by cutting the cable (actually a more easily-cut rope, for demonstration purposes) while he was in the lift. As soon as the cable tension failed, the dogs sprang out, engaged the shaft and Otis only dropped a few inches. Of course, modern systems use different safety devices, but the original Otis one would not work with a maglev drive.
A bit like this non-software example. The photos are great.
Here.
I don't have power steering, ABS, airbags, traction control, power windows, power mirrors or even a heated rear window. But then I learned to drive before cars had all this stuff. The car is a poverty-spec '97 Mazda MX-5, by the way, something most /. readers will know as the Miata.
I guess you didn't RTFA, or you'd have realised that the researchers ATFR (anesthetized the fsckin' rodents).
So if he had a V8 engine running at 6000 rpm, he could make nearly $2.9m/hr? Sign me up!
Japanese. Very cruel race.
Now I was never a particularly aggressive driver (and the only accident I ever caused was when I reversed into a concrete pillar) but I can safely say that in 19 years of driving I leave a lot more space in front and anticipate other drivers' bad behaviour better than I used to. Hell, when I was 25 in a little 988cc car I used to drive a section of country lane in about half the time that I would risk it now - in a car with 2.5x the power. It's all about testosterone and perceived invincibility.
I have two words for you: "arms race". When everyone's driving SUVs, no-one will be any safer (in fact, probably less so, since many accidents don't involve another vehicle). And I'm sorry, a man in an SUV always makes me think of the rednecks in "Bob's Country Bunker".
Isn't it beautiful, incidentally, how 1 metric tonne is almost exactly the same as an Imperial ton?
can't safely coexist with anything, but I still love mine.
iDon'tthinkso.
I'm sure they'll keep flogging the iPod cash cow; maybe an iPod portable DVD player?
Calcium? Although iron must run it a close second.
Although as Ra used to be Rd (yes, really) he could also have had the rare neon-radium compound of NeRd.
Or maybe they're just a bunch of inveterate geeks, who knows.
Of course, if the feds find 100GB of mp3, warez and barnyard love on your hard drive this might not work.
I confess I don't know. It's a Netgear DG834.
I agree. Your best defence on the Internet is a hardware firewall router and a well-developed bullshit detector. Doesn't slow your computer down.
Ah, "Bob". Melissa Gates' legacy to civilisation, and marginally less popular than Dvorak keyboards :-P
There is a way to avoid speeding fines and points; it's called controlling the right foot.
The reason plates are being stolen is that the new controls on supplying plates (ID, proof of entitlement to the registration such as the registration document) makes it slightly more difficult to have cloned plates made up. Of course, anyone in the trade can still knock up a set when no-one is looking, but since all the blanks have to carry the manufacturer's name, it can be traced back to their employer.
If you're really worried, use pop rivets, tamper-proof screws, or stick-on plates.
And you assumed Jotii was male, because this is Slashdot. Oh, wait...
Agreed. I used to buy Quantum until Maxtor ate them. Now it's happened again. Supposedly there is no profit in hard drives (unless you're EMC^2, sticking hundreds of them together in a frame and selling it for 100x the price per GB).
Or Bum-O-Claus, as you might say in the US. Old but good, definitely NSFW.