My guess is his solution is a little bit too neat, and relies on technology more than brawn.
Have you read "Germs, Guns and Steel"? Being "primitive" doesn't mean being stupid or unsophisticated (neither today, nor most probably in the past). It just means you don't have certain means at your disposal, because they are not invented yet (as far as one knows) and you have to plan accordingly. Beyond some undetermined scale of particular building endeavor, no amount of brawn will do (due to impossibility of its addition, focusing, synchronization or logistics), so you must get technical ("neat").
However, the motivation to discuss this matter at all stems from apparent benefit for the economy and society at large if patents (practical ideas and clever solutions to problems) are given at least a certain mobility, if not freedom. Of course the companies use patents as absolute prohibitions, to keep others from doing not what they themselves do, or are intending to do, but to keep everybody from making changes that would cause business losses to patent holders. Well, it is certainly not what the original intention of the legal instrument of patent was and IMHO it should be considered illegal (anticompetitive) business practice that it is!
Today, notion "Intellectual Property" is both boosted and disputed in various arguments. The clash is always related to "sanctity" (as well as "sanity") part of it. While those "in the possession" argue that their rights should be protected as firmly as rights of, say real estate owners (none yet asked to be "allowed to shoot the trespassers", but...) the other side negates any analogy with material property. I suppose that is why none discusses another analogy: property tax and additional taxes on unused assets (e.g on arable land that is left uncultivated), usually used to spur the production and economy. Almost all nations even "punish" the hoarding of money in cash or on bank accounts (as opposed to investing it in some business activity) by invisibly taxing it through emission of new money (controlled inflation).
To conclude, thesauration of useful, especially (naturally or artificially) scarce and useful resources should be (at least a little bit) discouraged and its' reuse promoted.
Yes, this is actually like "one man's garbage is another man's treasure" kind of thing - it promotes "vultures' sitting", waiting for a useful patent to be thrown away... err, donated.
If it is a matter of price (apparently, it is) then "dormant patent" holders should have equivalent of "annual garage sale" for their patents. Perhaps even an "Unused Patents (International?) Fair" should be established to promote putting dusty ideas to good use.
All Sun-orbiting cellestial bodies have velocity between solar "first cosmic speed" (circular orbiting speed) and solar "second cosmic speed" (escape velocity). In order to get rid of dangerous ones, we need to slow them down (e.g. by retro-rocket braking) so that they would fall on Sun, or speed them up to solar "second cosmic speed" so that they leave our system entirely, not try to swing them sideways, into an unpredictable, wobbling orbit. What we choose to do depends on what is "cheaper" (energy-wise), but I think first option is safer (no return from gravity well).
Do we even know how a hunk of rock would react to the introduction of a bunch of alpha particles/gamma rays/x-rays/infrared radiation/etc? How would the the crystalline structure of the rock be affected? What models do we have that indicate the rock would shatter from an internal heat differential, rather than merely glowing very bright red for a while [assuming the rock even chose to absorb the heat energy in the first place, rather than just deflecting it off into the void of outer space]?
Well, actually, abrupt heating one side of it would have the effect of making some of it evaporate and a sort of reactive push would have been excercised upon the object. Besides, all those particles from the explosion have their own momentum that would be given to the receiving body. So, I think either way the asteroid would deflect.
Re:Yes but what makes his little project special??
on
DIY Laptop
·
· Score: 1
I voted this one up in absence of more interesting DIYs. I would certainly vote your project up if you made a post in your journal and submitted it. Speaking of which, Hey, way to go man! Congratulations on your project. However, if it is too advanced and ambitious, we probably won't get any interesting details about it, nor we would get any "How I did it" instructions or tips, right? Consequently, the fun factor goes down.
My suggestion for maintaining structural stability: do what deep sea life does: fill the innards with a liquid (choose wisely: something non-corrosive, hydrophobic, non-reactive with salt, a good dielectric, bad electric conductor but good heat conductor), so that the hydrostatic pressure is equalized and hull doesn't need to hold against the outer pressure. Actually, the main reason subs need such tough hulls is that they carry crews of surface-dwelling creatures on board. However, your robotic sub doesn't have to solve same class of problems manned subs do.
It would have been even more "steampunk" if numerical keypad was replaced with an old telephone rotary encoder (ah, the sound) and various "lock" keys replaced with pole switches. That would require some additional electronics hacking, though.
Oh, and... LEDs should be replaced with little light bulbs from torches or, even better, wavelength scale backlight bulbs from antique radios (perhaps bulbs from Christmas tree lights would do fine), in nice little light "towers".
Of course, an old 4-circuit woven fabric tube enclosed telephone cable is in order to connect it to the motherboard. Although PC keyboard connector has 5 pins, one of them is not connected.
We've already passed that introduction stage. You have been able to buy "solid state" commercial of-the shelf parts (high speed, very high rewrite endurance non volatile memory... and even microcontrollers) based on similar processes of molecule reshapings (no carbon nanotubes in them, though) for years. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferroelectric_RAM
IMHO, although I am not that much fond of their architecture, PICs are as scalable as you can get, from tiny little 5-pin SOT mites to serious high pin count have-it-alls.
Just make sure you jump them on time when scale (functional, software complexity) grows too big, as they don't agree quite well with mainstream computer science paradigms, by which I mean: "no hardware supported general purpose stack in RAM".
However, that probably will never be a problem for high school simple robotics projects.
but wouldn't immune system attack bacteria? The "motors" may get clogged with antibodies faster then you can shout: "Lookout ! The macrophages are incoming!"
Not likely to happen. If this were truly a "cure" then any need for further cancer research would no longer be needed and so these institutes would have to find a new business. People seldom try deliberately to work themselves out of a job.
Unless they could immediately retire on reward after it is done and never HAVE TO work again in their lives... Which could be arranged for something of that importance...
So, if I understood you well, in a way, we have this "thermal ground" similar to "electric ground" by its constancy (of temperature instead of potential). The way to use it then would be to find the depth where the temperature is constantly in the middle of daily temperature extremes above ground, so that there is no need to "store" and "retrieve" heat, provided such "middle temperature point" exists in the ground, that is.
Thermal insulation means you can temper inside of the house against external temperature using far less energy then without it. In warm climate, you would spend less electricity/money on cooling your house. Of course, the difference would be you wouldn't have big windows facing south, or at least you would have long horizontal shades (or a sidelong porch) above them. Anyhow, thermal insulation always pays back, except in some very stable moderate climate with no temperature extremes whatsoever. Of course, no doubt, it pays a little bit more in cold climate... but apparently that may change in the future as well.
I'd stack them too, for other purpose: as highly efficient PV batteries (well, if you make a transistor, I guess you made a couple of PN junctions, so why not...), up to the depth where almost all of the light gets absorbed.
Can those things even take being under the far less pressure near the surface water?
It seems like most important question indeed. Describing baby giant squids as "fragile" seems to imply that it may be the problem. It was the problem with some very deep sea creatures: when they surfaced them, they fell apart. At the very least, those squids may be more prone to... well,... "catastrophic failure" up here.
Erm unforunately kids tend to need some interaction, they don't just sit and play or sleep the whole time.
Well, it is true kids need interaction but it is not like they always suck away all of your attention all the time. Sometimes they indeed do need more attention, those are days when you would call in sick otherwise. Even if you don't entertain them, they'll tend to play being you and thus entertain themselves. It is much like "Take your daughter to work" day. Most of the human history, while all work was work home (on agricultural estates and around house) kids were together with their parents, who worked. I suppose home office is much safer environment for them then stables, fields and yards. Overall, I think they are more happy if you are around, even if you do something not related to them.
I think that people are more likely to be misunderstood when they don't have some face-to-face contact. I don't like starting projects with people I've never met personally, the initial kick-off is much better being face-to-face.
Indeed, you don't like it. However not everyone is capable of doing things every possible way.
Me, I have feeling I communicate much "cleaner" and more concise if I am forced to write. You cannot lure others into warm fuzzy feeling of understanding if you actually didn't provide needed information. There is no hand waving. Every two-way written communication allows for gradual clarification.
Perhaps you may have difficulties to trust people, therefore you need to "scan" their body language for signs of hidden tell signs that would discriminate them as faulty. I prefer, if I can do that, to set the stage in such way that I don't need to trust them. Either they comply and have work done good, on time, or they do not comply and are out on the basis of hard facts. It is more work for management, but if they work by themselves, manage them themselves and control themselves, why would they need me? To be Cinderella's stepmother and make it harder for them to work?
There's also the risk that one day they'll be a coup, and you'll be pushed out of the loop. All your people start working with each other.
Ah, more paranoia... so they are conspiring against me, the company owner. I guess that is because I am forcing them to work in inhuman working conditions... What's the point? If they are going to do it, they can do it even without telecommuting. However, they are bound by laws and contracts and I would keep the trademarks and copyrights. Besides, their passwords can be revoked any time and they would have to recreate working environment elsewhere.
OK, I assume you were referring to situation of a CEO running this kind of company, not the owner. In that case, yes, certainly at least some of your subordinates will want your job. OTOH, you are the link between them and owners. For coup to succeed, first the board has to be dissatisfied with your performance, then someone ambitious from below has to contact them and denounce you as culprit (i.e. you are not being enough harsh to slackers or you are micromanaging, or you are making wrong and harmful decisions or something), but first this person would have to successfully manipulate own coworkers, without resorting to personal charm (it is hard when you don't have eye-to-eye contact). It may be hard to do if this person is not burning out a lot of "informal" bandwidth, which is a telltale sign that this person is on to something. If I do my job well and are truly respected by most of my employees (to know truth, you must not punish different opinions), any attempt of treason will be unsuccessful (there is plethora of ways to directly and discreetly communicate with my "followers" to find out or be informed if there is a trouble cooking up). However, I may deserve it as well, the other guy or gal may as well be a better manager, none can entirely control own destiny and own competitors.
If I was founding a new, startup company nowadays, I would base it almost completely on telecommuting workforce. Therefore there would be no disadvantage for any of the employees compared to any other one.
There are numerous savings for employer due to such business decision:
First, lower rent (or real estate price) for office (and parking) space.
Second, lower electricity and water bills, as well as no need for too many janitors, security personnel, etc.
Third, I can find workforce that will accept lower pays: people have lower expenses, they don't have to commute to work, they don't have to eat out, they don't have to pay other people to day care their babies and little kids, they can even have another parallel job, as long as it doesn't interfere with their job in my hypothetic company. The savings on expenses they would have can balance the lower pay I would offer them.
Fourth, I could, without additional costs to maintain , hire people who have troubles finding jobs because people write them out on a number of excuses but mainly because of prejudice: handicapped people, single (and not only single) mothers who still brestfeed their babies or care for their toddlers, scarred or ugly people, people who can't or have difficulties to communicate verbally, racial, ethnic or sexual minorities encumbered by others' prejudices, etc. It is rotten, unethical thing to say, but some of those people are likely to work for less money because in practice, their options are quite limited. However, you can always do the right thing and offer them decent wage. OTOH, you don't really need to know about any aspect of your employees' lives except how good is their work. Just make offer you want and don't inquire their reasons for accepting it.
Fifth, smaller probability of litigations for various interpersonal faults. People much more easily tolerate each other when they are separated by communication channel.
Sixth, I can employ people from anywhere in the world, who will work our "after hours" in their normal working hours. I don't have to care about relocation, visas, or anything.
Seventh, as company HQ itself is quite "small footprint", I could easily establish it in some "tax paradise" country.
Now, how you make a cohesive, vibrant company out of tele-present people? Well, look at internet communities, MMO games, forums, Slashdot included! It is obvious that there is much action going on there, people helping people, brainstorms are frequent, lots of ideas are transferred, assessed, refined...
Allow employees with message board or IRC channels on company's VPN. Don't monitor their conversations unless where necessary - in "public" message boards - "conference room". Allow them to make emotional bonds of friendship, to feel like if they work next to each other and get to know each other well. However, perhaps you should bill their time spent on work unrelated (non-monitored) chats. For work related communication, they should use monitored and logged message boards (On the second thought, it should be mandatory even in companies that work with physically present employees, for other good reasons).
Now, there's where all the action may take place: on the rock bottom, under the ocean of dust. What's next: we'll dig out live macroscopic, big, crawling and wiggling animals that live in the Martian soil near geo...thermal heat sources?
We need sensitive geo...phones sent up there ASAP to detect if there is any characteristic sounds of moving.
OK, I need a help here: when word has prefix "geo", should it be substituted if it is applied to other planets?
OK, so it is a weak energy source. I agree it is not on par with hydro, coal, or nuclear. Did I ever counter THAT?
It is irrelevant to my point which is: energy is transportable, even on quite long distances, when converted to HV electric energy, which it usually is. We build power plants where it is feasible, use energy where we need it. Only requirement is that location doesn't change so we pick it carefully.
On Slashdot it is not only that people don't RTFA, they don't even bother to RTFP (usually shorter then TFA) they reply to! Everyone just assume what poster wrote, or even what poster thinks.
Slashdot Mirror
Have you read "Germs, Guns and Steel"? Being "primitive" doesn't mean being stupid or unsophisticated (neither today, nor most probably in the past). It just means you don't have certain means at your disposal, because they are not invented yet (as far as one knows) and you have to plan accordingly. Beyond some undetermined scale of particular building endeavor, no amount of brawn will do (due to impossibility of its addition, focusing, synchronization or logistics), so you must get technical ("neat").
Stratospheric balloons instead of satellites. Or solar powered autonomous UAVs...(although in some countries they would be shot at).
However, the motivation to discuss this matter at all stems from apparent benefit for the economy and society at large if patents (practical ideas and clever solutions to problems) are given at least a certain mobility, if not freedom. Of course the companies use patents as absolute prohibitions, to keep others from doing not what they themselves do, or are intending to do, but to keep everybody from making changes that would cause business losses to patent holders. Well, it is certainly not what the original intention of the legal instrument of patent was and IMHO it should be considered illegal (anticompetitive) business practice that it is!
Today, notion "Intellectual Property" is both boosted and disputed in various arguments. The clash is always related to "sanctity" (as well as "sanity") part of it. While those "in the possession" argue that their rights should be protected as firmly as rights of, say real estate owners (none yet asked to be "allowed to shoot the trespassers", but...) the other side negates any analogy with material property. I suppose that is why none discusses another analogy: property tax and additional taxes on unused assets (e.g on arable land that is left uncultivated), usually used to spur the production and economy. Almost all nations even "punish" the hoarding of money in cash or on bank accounts (as opposed to investing it in some business activity) by invisibly taxing it through emission of new money (controlled inflation).
To conclude, thesauration of useful, especially (naturally or artificially) scarce and useful resources should be (at least a little bit) discouraged and its' reuse promoted.
Yes, this is actually like "one man's garbage is another man's treasure" kind of thing - it promotes "vultures' sitting", waiting for a useful patent to be thrown away... err, donated.
If it is a matter of price (apparently, it is) then "dormant patent" holders should have equivalent of "annual garage sale" for their patents. Perhaps even an "Unused Patents (International?) Fair" should be established to promote putting dusty ideas to good use.
All Sun-orbiting cellestial bodies have velocity between solar "first cosmic speed" (circular orbiting speed) and solar "second cosmic speed" (escape velocity). In order to get rid of dangerous ones, we need to slow them down (e.g. by retro-rocket braking) so that they would fall on Sun, or speed them up to solar "second cosmic speed" so that they leave our system entirely, not try to swing them sideways, into an unpredictable, wobbling orbit. What we choose to do depends on what is "cheaper" (energy-wise), but I think first option is safer (no return from gravity well).
I voted this one up in absence of more interesting DIYs. I would certainly vote your project up if you made a post in your journal and submitted it. Speaking of which, Hey, way to go man! Congratulations on your project.
However, if it is too advanced and ambitious, we probably won't get any interesting details about it, nor we would get any "How I did it" instructions or tips, right? Consequently, the fun factor goes down.
My suggestion for maintaining structural stability: do what deep sea life does: fill the innards with a liquid (choose wisely: something non-corrosive, hydrophobic, non-reactive with salt, a good dielectric, bad electric conductor but good heat conductor), so that the hydrostatic pressure is equalized and hull doesn't need to hold against the outer pressure. Actually, the main reason subs need such tough hulls is that they carry crews of surface-dwelling creatures on board. However, your robotic sub doesn't have to solve same class of problems manned subs do.
It would have been even more "steampunk" if numerical keypad was replaced with an old telephone rotary encoder (ah, the sound) and various "lock" keys replaced with pole switches. That would require some additional electronics hacking, though.
Oh, and... LEDs should be replaced with little light bulbs from torches or, even better, wavelength scale backlight bulbs from antique radios (perhaps bulbs from Christmas tree lights would do fine), in nice little light "towers".
Of course, an old 4-circuit woven fabric tube enclosed telephone cable is in order to connect it to the motherboard. Although PC keyboard connector has 5 pins, one of them is not connected.
We've already passed that introduction stage. You have been able to buy "solid state" commercial of-the shelf parts (high speed, very high rewrite endurance non volatile memory... and even microcontrollers) based on similar processes of molecule reshapings (no carbon nanotubes in them, though) for years. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferroelectric_RAM
However, stretches of metal "piano strings", that kept everything in shape and one piece, are nice reflectors, even resonant on right wavelengths
OK, make it a FPGA matrix then...
IMHO, although I am not that much fond of their architecture, PICs are as scalable as you can get, from tiny little 5-pin SOT mites to serious high pin count have-it-alls.
Just make sure you jump them on time when scale (functional, software complexity) grows too big, as they don't agree quite well with mainstream computer science paradigms, by which I mean: "no hardware supported general purpose stack in RAM".
However, that probably will never be a problem for high school simple robotics projects.
AFAIK, Rabbit's are ascendants of Z80, not of 8051.
but wouldn't immune system attack bacteria? The "motors" may get clogged with antibodies faster then you can shout: "Lookout ! The macrophages are incoming!"
CHOMP CHOMP CHOMP CHOMP...
Yeah, for a kind of Monthy Python's "Giant Foot" effect on a battlefield.
Unless they could immediately retire on reward after it is done and never HAVE TO work again in their lives... Which could be arranged for something of that importance...
That would be a kibimeter!
So, if I understood you well, in a way, we have this "thermal ground" similar to "electric ground" by its constancy (of temperature instead of potential). The way to use it then would be to find the depth where the temperature is constantly in the middle of daily temperature extremes above ground, so that there is no need to "store" and "retrieve" heat, provided such "middle temperature point" exists in the ground, that is.
Thermal insulation means you can temper inside of the house against external temperature using far less energy then without it. In warm climate, you would spend less electricity/money on cooling your house. Of course, the difference would be you wouldn't have big windows facing south, or at least you would have long horizontal shades (or a sidelong porch) above them. Anyhow, thermal insulation always pays back, except in some very stable moderate climate with no temperature extremes whatsoever. Of course, no doubt, it pays a little bit more in cold climate... but apparently that may change in the future as well.
I'd stack them too, for other purpose: as highly efficient PV batteries (well, if you make a transistor, I guess you made a couple of PN junctions, so why not...), up to the depth where almost all of the light gets absorbed.
Well, it is true kids need interaction but it is not like they always suck away all of your attention all the time. Sometimes they indeed do need more attention, those are days when you would call in sick otherwise. Even if you don't entertain them, they'll tend to play being you and thus entertain themselves. It is much like "Take your daughter to work" day. Most of the human history, while all work was work home (on agricultural estates and around house) kids were together with their parents, who worked. I suppose home office is much safer environment for them then stables, fields and yards. Overall, I think they are more happy if you are around, even if you do something not related to them.
Indeed, you don't like it. However not everyone is capable of doing things every possible way.
Me, I have feeling I communicate much "cleaner" and more concise if I am forced to write. You cannot lure others into warm fuzzy feeling of understanding if you actually didn't provide needed information. There is no hand waving. Every two-way written communication allows for gradual clarification.
Perhaps you may have difficulties to trust people, therefore you need to "scan" their body language for signs of hidden tell signs that would discriminate them as faulty. I prefer, if I can do that, to set the stage in such way that I don't need to trust them. Either they comply and have work done good, on time, or they do not comply and are out on the basis of hard facts. It is more work for management, but if they work by themselves, manage them themselves and control themselves, why would they need me? To be Cinderella's stepmother and make it harder for them to work?
Ah, more paranoia... so they are conspiring against me, the company owner. I guess that is because I am forcing them to work in inhuman working conditions... What's the point? If they are going to do it, they can do it even without telecommuting. However, they are bound by laws and contracts and I would keep the trademarks and copyrights. Besides, their passwords can be revoked any time and they would have to recreate working environment elsewhere.
OK, I assume you were referring to situation of a CEO running this kind of company, not the owner. In that case, yes, certainly at least some of your subordinates will want your job. OTOH, you are the link between them and owners. For coup to succeed, first the board has to be dissatisfied with your performance, then someone ambitious from below has to contact them and denounce you as culprit (i.e. you are not being enough harsh to slackers or you are micromanaging, or you are making wrong and harmful decisions or something), but first this person would have to successfully manipulate own coworkers, without resorting to personal charm (it is hard when you don't have eye-to-eye contact). It may be hard to do if this person is not burning out a lot of "informal" bandwidth, which is a telltale sign that this person is on to something. If I do my job well and are truly respected by most of my employees (to know truth, you must not punish different opinions), any attempt of treason will be unsuccessful (there is plethora of ways to directly and discreetly communicate with my "followers" to find out or be informed if there is a trouble cooking up). However, I may deserve it as well, the other guy or gal may as well be a better manager, none can entirely control own destiny and own competitors.
If I was founding a new, startup company nowadays, I would base it almost completely on telecommuting workforce. Therefore there would be no disadvantage for any of the employees compared to any other one.
There are numerous savings for employer due to such business decision:
First, lower rent (or real estate price) for office (and parking) space.
Second, lower electricity and water bills, as well as no need for too many janitors, security personnel, etc.
Third, I can find workforce that will accept lower pays: people have lower expenses, they don't have to commute to work, they don't have to eat out, they don't have to pay other people to day care their babies and little kids, they can even have another parallel job, as long as it doesn't interfere with their job in my hypothetic company. The savings on expenses they would have can balance the lower pay I would offer them.
Fourth, I could, without additional costs to maintain , hire people who have troubles finding jobs because people write them out on a number of excuses but mainly because of prejudice: handicapped people, single (and not only single) mothers who still brestfeed their babies or care for their toddlers, scarred or ugly people, people who can't or have difficulties to communicate verbally, racial, ethnic or sexual minorities encumbered by others' prejudices, etc. It is rotten, unethical thing to say, but some of those people are likely to work for less money because in practice, their options are quite limited. However, you can always do the right thing and offer them decent wage. OTOH, you don't really need to know about any aspect of your employees' lives except how good is their work. Just make offer you want and don't inquire their reasons for accepting it.
Fifth, smaller probability of litigations for various interpersonal faults. People much more easily tolerate each other when they are separated by communication channel.
Sixth, I can employ people from anywhere in the world, who will work our "after hours" in their normal working hours. I don't have to care about relocation, visas, or anything.
Seventh, as company HQ itself is quite "small footprint", I could easily establish it in some "tax paradise" country.
Now, how you make a cohesive, vibrant company out of tele-present people? Well, look at internet communities, MMO games, forums, Slashdot included! It is obvious that there is much action going on there, people helping people, brainstorms are frequent, lots of ideas are transferred, assessed, refined...
Allow employees with message board or IRC channels on company's VPN. Don't monitor their conversations unless where necessary - in "public" message boards - "conference room". Allow them to make emotional bonds of friendship, to feel like if they work next to each other and get to know each other well. However, perhaps you should bill their time spent on work unrelated (non-monitored) chats. For work related communication, they should use monitored and logged message boards (On the second thought, it should be mandatory even in companies that work with physically present employees, for other good reasons).
Mars has "dirtosphere"?
Now, there's where all the action may take place: on the rock bottom, under the ocean of dust.
What's next: we'll dig out live macroscopic, big, crawling and wiggling animals that live in the Martian soil near geo...thermal heat sources?
We need sensitive geo...phones sent up there ASAP to detect if there is any characteristic sounds of moving.
OK, I need a help here: when word has prefix "geo", should it be substituted if it is applied to other planets?
OK, so it is a weak energy source. I agree it is not on par with hydro, coal, or nuclear. Did I ever counter THAT?
It is irrelevant to my point which is: energy is transportable, even on quite long distances, when converted to HV electric energy, which it usually is. We build power plants where it is feasible, use energy where we need it. Only requirement is that location doesn't change so we pick it carefully.
On Slashdot it is not only that people don't RTFA, they don't even bother to RTFP (usually shorter then TFA) they reply to! Everyone just assume what poster wrote, or even what poster thinks.