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mechhacker

723 karma · joined December 14, 2019

Mechanical Engineer with a programming problem.

Past experience on: Airplanes Spacecraft Nuclear Reactors

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mechhacker··on NASA's Starliner decision was the right one, but it's a crushing blow for Boeing
Boeing management seems to be the real crushing blow for Boeing.
mechhacker··on Red Mill Burgers (2020)
I used to go on motorcycle rides and would go to the one closer to Shilshole/Golden Gates. One of the places I miss since moving to the East Coast the year this article was written. Great burgers.
mechhacker··on Volcanoes can affect climate
> Large bollide collides with earth and deepens the ice age
mechhacker··on Windows 11 is now enabling OneDrive folder backup without asking permission
Feeling vindicated in having gotten rid of my windows comps and gmail. I used to have a dedicated linux box but lately have been preferring the ease of macs. Maybe one day I'll get another linux desktop up, or just run it on the m2.
mechhacker··on 54 Humans in One 8-meter Gravitics Module
Probably depends greatly on the expanded configuration and what equipment is inside.
mechhacker··on Vestas Sailrocket
The AC75 class is now going very fast as well with foils, over 50kts.

Just recently the 40kt barrier was broken by hydrofoil windsurfers. Fins still have a higher top end but the gap has been closing. I'm not sure what design change will enable foils to be just as fast or if they hit a wall.

I've personally done about 24kts on foil and similar on fin and in some cases it's a bit terrifying in more chop. Others are much faster than that.

mechhacker··on Cancel Adobe if you are a creative under NDA with your clients
Krita has gotten really great over the years, and it started out pretty good to begin with
mechhacker··on Super Heavy has splashed down in The Gulf of Mexico
The upper stage re entering was the craziest thing I've seen live. Can't believe it was burning thru the flap and still had a gentle splash down.
mechhacker··on Workmanship standard for crimping, interconnecting cables, harnesses, and wiring
In my brief stint working on spacecraft in the private sector I worked with guys like you that did beautiful things with wiring that I loved to see.

I hear you on scheduling too. I've given best estimates and they then get chopped up and halved (or worse) by management types, then things start to slip and we end up being closer to what was originally estimated, but somehow everyone then gets surprised.

mechhacker··on How do our brains adapt to control an extra body part?
Nowhere near as extreme but I broke my leg and there was a weird sensation if I touched my leg near the break, my toes would tingle even though they were quite a ways away. Years later, it no longer does that and feels normal in that area.
mechhacker··on Cement recycling method could help solve one of the big climate challenges
Nuclear has a large heat source (or can make a large heat source instead of converting to electric first) to do a lot of things like this.
mechhacker··on Mars rover mission will use pioneering nuclear power source
I was hoping there would be something here about using Stirling engines that use decay heat, but looks like they are just using the decay heat itself and not generating electricity. The space stirling engines that NASA has worked on in a few iterations made a lot more electrical power than the older RTGs, with the tradeoff of moving components and associated issues.
mechhacker··on Windows 11 adding ads to Start Menu
Spyware as a service?
mechhacker··on Base 10 is not a good base
It really seems like the ancients knew quite a bit. Their system for counting and for angles seems to have been really handy. And the measurement system of feet and inches was really close to what everyone had readily available.
mechhacker··on To Delay Death, Lift Weights (2017)
How heavy are you going? It definitely isn't boring to do heavy squats.
mechhacker··on To Delay Death, Lift Weights (2017)
A good counterpoint to show someone who did stay fit is Jack LaLanne.
mechhacker··on Lawyers in Musk pay case seek fee of $6B in Tesla stock
It's not hypocrisy

They are just robbing him

mechhacker··on Children need risk, fear, and excitement in play
I remember falling off of a tall monkey bar thing like that and getting the wind knocked out of me the first time. And a lot of other equipment that I haven't seen in decades.
mechhacker··on New jet engine enables efficiency at every speed for cheaper orbital launches
It would be interesting to see a cross section and what kind of variable geometry they are using to max out in the different flight regimes. I poked around and didn't see that, and I wonder if they could even publish that at this stage.
mechhacker··on Airfoil
IIRC that is due to other issues, not aerodynamics.

For instance, the engine no longer receiving oil at negative 1 g, or fuel, as the system is designed for gravity flow.

Stunt planes and airplanes capable of long inverted flight need special oiling and fuel systems to keep the engine from starving from either.

mechhacker··on Testing the F-35C Tailhook
Same, but different industry. Lots of re-engineering of the wheel after the original designers give their warnings and recommendations, but everyone's too smart to try the simple thing that already works first.
mechhacker··on Airfoil
It also changes a lot for sailboats, and even more for faster sailing craft (windsurfers, etc.).

You can feel a much stronger pressure in the sail when moving towards the wind on a fast windsurfer/windfoil as you can do 15-20kts 45deg towards the wind, giving you an apparent wind that is 10-14kts stronger than the true wind.

On the same craft, going away/downwind, you will feel the apparent wind at a similar angle 10-14kts less. In fact, because of the change in drag and forces, you'll probably be going faster and feel even less wind on the downwind leg.

When you turn, this can be a big benefit for going downwind (jibing) as at some point the sail feels zero apparent wind (your motion cancelling out the true wind), feels very light in your hand, and easy to rotate to face the other way. Even knowing the physics of it, the timing and execution is still something that takes a lot of practice...especially on big race gear with a 9.0m2 sail.

mechhacker··on Institutions try to preserve the problem to which they are the solution
I didn't see any mention of Robert Conquest's 3 laws of bureaucracy:

1 Everyone is conservative about what he knows best.

2 Any organization not explicitly right-wing sooner or later becomes left-wing.

3 The simplest way to explain the behavior of any bureaucratic organization is to assume that it is controlled by a cabal of its enemies

mechhacker··on FDA says 561 deaths tied to recalled Philips sleep apnea machines
What do you do for it?
mechhacker··on FDA says 561 deaths tied to recalled Philips sleep apnea machines
What tape works for you?
mechhacker··on FDA says 561 deaths tied to recalled Philips sleep apnea machines
Caught that you mentioned gout.

I recently got gout when I really pushed my body hard by running 4x my normal distance in one week, still worked out, kept eating lots of junk (lots of sugary stuff), and drinking 3-4 drinks a night regularly. I also got a cold. Right after that, I got hit with massive toe pain on one foot.

Thankfully it was just a little bit of prednisone but it caused me to back off drinking and eat less sweet things. I'm relatively fit (~35" waist, 203-205ish pounds at 6'1"), but I also dropped down about 5 pounds (was about 208-210) after that and will probably continue to lose more.

mechhacker··on Senator Wyden Letter Confirms NSA Is Buying US Persons' Data from Data Brokers
Good luck functioning in modern life without phones like this. There need to be limits, and it is being abused. And nobody reads the ToS.
mechhacker··on Senator Wyden Letter Confirms NSA Is Buying US Persons' Data from Data Brokers
That and the third amendment for stationing a "soldier" (tracking and data collection) in our home (phone). And it needs to be extended to monopoly involuntary "private" entities with known federal sweetheart deals.
mechhacker··on Google Update Reveals AI Will Read All Your Private Messages
Really needs to be a bill of rights issue to not have every human communication read by an outside entity, including robots, "private" or not.

Both 3rd and 4th amendment apply.

"No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner o be prescribed by law." The soldier being Google and the house being my phone.

mechhacker··on Fossil is quitting smartwatches
The one I got as a gift is a solar Instinct. I'll have to ask her what she thinks of it. I looked at the log of solar activity and it does keep track of solar intensity through the day. I just am not sure how much it impacts charging.
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