Eclectic junk from the four corners of the ‘Net. And pictures too!
Cool… No shark jokes please.
According to Boeing, the C-130 fired its 12,000lb high-power chemical laser through the beam control system while flying over White Sands Missile Range, N.M. The beam control system acquired the ground target and guided the laser beam to the target.
[via NetworkWorld]
Zapping things from the sky: Airborne Boeing laser blasts ground target.
Yeah, I know the title of this post is misleading but you have to admit it’s funny. I’m all for eating a well balanced diet, all this no-carb high veg diet stuff has never sounded healthy to me. Sure, you shouldn’t be eating a pound of pretzels followed but 2 liters of diet soda every night. You do that and you had better ring up the funeral home of your choice and reserve a spot. Moderation must be the key to all this ‘food is good/bad for you’ nonsense. Have a hand full of pretzels and few gulps of soda and go find something else to do to distract you from your zombie like mouth stuffing habits. I suggest taking up juggling or learning card tricks. The world needs more juggling prestidigitators.
You know, this just look relaxing and fun. Never mind the possibility that you could get hit by a plane, sucked up in a storm cloud, pelted and ultimately killed by hail, or just go unconscious and freeze to death before you plummet to the ground and a heap of latex and lawn chair. As hobbies go I’m all for this one. Lets hope he continues to make flights.
Kent Couch, devoted husband, father of five and gas station owner, seems like just another man but underneath the surface, you’ll find a characteristic not quite normal. While most men have a passion for sports or hunting, Kent has a passion for cluster ballooning, much to the chagrin of his supportive wife, Susan.
Not only is this super fun looking, but there are some very nice build photos that show how the SRBG2007SideWinder is constructed. Electric powered, fires hundreds of shots, simple design, what more could you ask for in a rubber band gun?
But if that wasn’t cool enough, you should look through the pages of the Japan Rubber Band Gun Shooting Association. Yes, there is a group of people that get together and compare notes on how to build rubber band guns.
[via Japan Probe]
SRBG2007SideWinder photo gallery
Japan Rubber Band Gun Shooting Association
(in Google English)
Soon versions of the British electronics enthusiast magazine will be hitting American book store shelves.
Elektor Electronics is a British magazine that aims to inspire people to master electronics at any level by presenting construction projects and spotting developments in electronics and information technology. Every issue is packed with innovative articles, simple and complex construction projects, news, reviews, columns, and more.
I’m looking forward to reading it, hard to find good electronics projects magazines these days.
When I think about how easy it is to find information on the Internet I have to pause to wonder just how accurate is that information? Back in the day you had to go to a library or dust off a volume of the household encyclopedia to get the facts on a subject. Now you just have to do a Google search of scan the Wikipedia article on it. That’s all well and good but just how do you know what you’re reading is correct? The books and periodicals that are in the library are a trusted source because publishers have fact checkers that fix incorrect data before a bazillion copies are made. Not so on the wild Internet. It’s tough to sort out the facts from the BS and like the author of the bellow mentioned article says you need to be a bit of a detective. He outlines a number of ways to see the clues that offer insight into whether what your reading is on the mark or is crackpot nonsense. These ‘rules of thumb’ are also part of being a critical thinker. I’m fond of saying that you should keep an open mind but don’t let it fall out. Think of critical thinking as a bungie cord for your brain. Enough give to move about but keeps everything all together when the going is rough. Enjoy the article and I hope this helps you while you navigate the ‘Net.
[via Skepchick]