I learned how many Energizer batteries the Energizer Bunny took to run.

Guess. (highlight below)

[44]

Today I learned more about the audience of Make magazine.

and...?

I believe HM is a reader.

Indeed.

Grant Imahara, of Mythbusters fame, had an article about various robots he designed. The Energizer Bunny was one, and for PR and truth in advertising purposes it had to actually run on consumer-grade batteries, which aren't ideal for the power needs of robots.

Today I learned of grid waves.

I saw this pic over at BendBox with the filename 'grid waves off French coast'. Actually this pic shows what Wikipedia calls a cross swell, or Cross Sea, at Ile De Re.

It's weird, whatever it is:

Attachment 47937

Today I learned that Denzel Washington has a movie coming out in September...'The Equalizer'. Remember the tv show from the eighties, starring Edward Woodward? This is a remake of that. I loved the tv show. I really like Denzel Washington.

The trailer looks good. It looks real good.



Sorry for the Russian movie review girl at the end, it's the best version of the trailer I could find.

mmmmmmYeah... that does look good. "...I'll make an exception." Yikes.

Denzel Washington is a very, very talented, handsome actor. I really enjoy his films.

Yeah, I likes me some Denzel.

His cousin Ukee does the CBS news here in Philly.

Today I learned that the good old wooden baseball bat has become irrationally expensive. Apparently, cheap wooden bats cost about $80 a pop. Inexplicably, (not really) people are choosing Maple over Ash (previously common) or Hickory (what the Babe used) because you get a bit more oomph for your swing with maple and that's what Barry Bonds used.

Maple tends to fail abruptly and violently, where Ash tends to flake and get shitty. Hickory is just heavy, but is still the best material for overall performance duralbility (in my opinion as a wood worker) After all, that's what the Babe used and look how long it took to break his record, He had to hit uphill, in the snow, in the dark, and there were wolves!

So there is a dude not far from me who makes bats and sells them for $150 a pop and up.

Not a bad way to earn some $. On further research, it turns out he makes them in his parent's basement. I'm guessing he may still live at home, that goes a long way to cutting your overhead down.

hmm

*eyes lathe sitting in the corner*

should have been 42

Yeah, Grant really dropped the ball on that one. Two extra batteries couldn't have affected runtime THAT much.

Bat snob.

From WallyWorld:

Attachment 48244

Just sayin'.

If you have a programmable lathe,... Get cutting, I guess

the day before yesterday I learned that a woman invented Kevlar. Sadly, I learned from her Obit.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-27951043

TIL my fave comedian, Robin Williams, went to Detroit Cuntry Day School, a place we frequently drive past (and mock) on our way to Swim meets and water polo games in Birmingham MI

(because there and no flaming cuntriside around there unless you count the wife murders......)

I lolled in my quiet office... had to explain to two people why

I learned four things today:

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And then I learned about the manchineel tree...

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:speechls:

That seems a better price to me. I picked up a vintage Louisville Slugger at a thrift store for 7 bucks, the growth rings were tight. About 20 per inch. I'd be surprised if any modern bat was made from wood that good.

I'll look at wally world next time I'm in hell and see how a $30 bat compares. The $80 maple bat looked like shit to me.

Today I learned that

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:eek: They must have sold that banana a lot.

Today I learned a couple of things:

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Today I learned about Ulithi Atoll, during WWII. At one time, the largest naval facility in the world.

Some 'splaining, and good pics at the link.

Interesting perspectives

http://news.distractify.com/geek/tri...f-timeforever/

Today I learned about the Duke Axial Engine, from Duke Engines, down New Zealand way.

It's pretty wild.

The engine is so smooth, they start it, run it, rev it, and turn it off, all with a coin standing on edge on top of the engine, per video at the link....:notworthy

They've run it as high as 14:1 compression ratio on 91 octane gasoline. That would usually require a lot more octane.

I think those boys might be onto something.

They've been around for about 20 years. No matter how good it is, without funding it will languish. True, the car makers and major builders of motors for boats, planes and farm equipment, have a big investment in tooling and their parts supply chain.

Car builders have made several shots to make big strides in the power to weight category. Mazda had developed a new generation Rotary that had reliable seals, ran smoothly with great power, unfortunately the emissions and mileage didn't cut it.

I had wondered what happened to the Mazda rotary engine.

Yesterday I learned Brits say SatNav rather than GPS

We tend to use 'Satnav' in respect of the moving map and voice instructions unit used in cars.

For other applications, such as handheld units, air and sea navigation etc, we'd use 'GPS'.

I dunno. I think of the map on my phone as satnav.

Today I learned who Capt. Jack Harkness is. I watched "The Empty Child" and "The Doctor Dances". Niiiice!

Today I learned some new English words.

He's a lot of fun.

He gets a bit darker in the spinoff 'Torchwood'.

Today I learned that a lot of people were drinking sewage contaminated water back in the 70s in Crater Lake National Park.

My parents are there right now, and their posts on Facebook brought back memories of me getting sick shortly after visiting the park in 1975 at age 8. I was the only one in the family to drink from the water fountain at the visitor center on our short visit, and my parents saw a sign shortly after that that the water there was bad. I got violently ill, which sucks when you are camping, and my parents took me to a methadone clinic to get checked out, where we were told I had the flu. I have memories of hanging out in a tent for a few days and just being miserable while my brothers and sisters played in a lake.

Anyway, I wanted to see if there was any official record to this family lore, and is there ever. A Google search brings up a lot: Apparently raw sewage was contaminating the spring that was the water source for the national park. Manholes were overflowing below the visitor center and human turds were on the ground just uphill from the spring. Around 100,000 people were exposed to the contaminated water that summer. After weeks of mismanaging the problem and turf wars between various government agencies, they closed the park only a few days after our visit to try to fix the water problem. There were around 1,000 reported cases of people getting sick from drinking the sewage, and a handful of people actually contracted hepatitis. There was a lot of legal wrangling with settlements being paid out to people who got sick and the federal government settled with a lodge owner to compensate him for the settlements he had to pay out.

I guess the lesson is don't get your drinking water from a source downhill from your sewer.

No, the lesson is you should have listened to Ben Franklin. Beer good, water bad. :haha:

Fuckin' A.

Today I learned they're flushing the water mains around town...when I tried to take a shower.:neutral:

Attachment 49374

You can get a free one right there. :haha:

That's happened to me before. Annoying.

Not actually today, but last night...

I learned that the official, proper way to retire (i.e. dispose of) an old American flag is by burning. But you've got to, like, burn it nicely, not while screaming "Death to America."

There's an app for that.

Today, I learned, is Nat'l Buy Ammo Day.

So - the 19th of November is : World Toilet Day, National Buy Ammo Day and International Men's Day.

I missed out on that. What was I supposed to get?

An international man. Yours didn't come in the mail?

He got one. It was a secret though.

A Secret Asian Man

Today I learned that if you're a man who gets Ebola, and you manage to defeat the disease, and the doctors clear you to rejoin society, don't go having celebratory sex right away. Apparently the virus hangs out in your junk longer than anywhere else, and you're packing live virus down there for months.

Paging Sheldon

We know this now about men, and for all we know it could be the same for women. We're still learning about Ebola, so probably holding off on the celebratory sex is good advice.

I'm learning all sorts of stuff as I've been developing protocols to protect our medical center's Ebola care team.

You rock! Thanks for working on Ebola. It is a scary thing for us who don't understand the medical implications. So far, it seems we have a handle on it. I hope that handle holds. Can you give us honest advice in case it gets out of hand?

I'd be more concerned about the plague outbreak on the island nation of Madagascar.

Today I learned that my life is about to change dramatically. For the better I hope.

Best of luck Ali.

Whats happening?

For me, "dramatically" has always been ominous. :eyebrow:

Maybe she's going to start making really big cakes and popping out of them at parties!

Fortune cookie.

:p:

Worry closer to home, the plague is back!