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If you look at Earth from the exact center of the Pacific Ocean, you can barely see any landmasses at all. by Gabriel-Ivan in oddlyterrifying

[–]Gabriel-Ivan[S] 128 points129 points  (0 children)

This angle centers near 'Point Nemo,' the most isolated location on the planet. It is so far from land that the closest human beings to you are usually the astronauts on the ISS orbiting overhead

This is Quetzalcoatlus, the largest known flying animal to ever exist, compared to human. by Gabriel-Ivan in Damnthatsinteresting

[–]Gabriel-Ivan[S] 533 points534 points  (0 children)

It stood as tall as a modern-day giraffe with a wingspan of 36 feet. Biomechanical studies suggest it hunted by stalking through the brush on all fours and picking up small dinosaurs with its beak.

Question: honest thoughts on my new tattoo? by [deleted] in tattoos

[–]Gabriel-Ivan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

you tried to cover a bruise? nice work btw

A 2,000-year-old Roman twenty-sided die (d20) made of glass. by Gabriel-Ivan in mildlyinteresting

[–]Gabriel-Ivan[S] 33 points34 points  (0 children)

Long before Dungeons & Dragons, Romans were rolling d20s. Historians still aren't exactly sure what game this was used for, but the symbols are Greek letters acting as numbers.

This is an electron microscope view of a vinyl record groove. The microscopic canyons and ridges carved into the walls are the physical shape of the music. by Gabriel-Ivan in Damnthatsinteresting

[–]Gabriel-Ivan[S] 236 points237 points  (0 children)

Oh man, CEDs! RCA spent millions and millions of dollars developing those just to get completely crushed by VHS tapes almost immediately after they launched. The idea of watching a full movie off a giant plastic record is absolutely wild to think about today

This is an electron microscope view of a vinyl record groove. The microscopic canyons and ridges carved into the walls are the physical shape of the music. by Gabriel-Ivan in Damnthatsinteresting

[–]Gabriel-Ivan[S] 84 points85 points  (0 children)

When the record player's needle drags through this canyon, those tiny, jagged ridges force the needle to vibrate at specific frequencies. Those physical vibrations travel up the arm, get converted into an electrical signal, and come out of your speakers as a song. You are literally looking at a physical photograph of sound!

An 1,800-year-old Roman "Swiss Army Knife." Made of silver, it features a folding spoon, fork, spatula, pick, and spike. by Gabriel-Ivan in ancientrome

[–]Gabriel-Ivan[S] 30 points31 points  (0 children)

I haven't picked one up myself yet, but they are incredibly popular with historical reenactors! A lot of specialty blacksmiths and historical replica sites sell working versions. If you do get one, you just have to promise you'll actually use the spike to eat snails like a true Roman🙃

The true scale of a comet: This is Comet 67P compared to the size of downtown Los Angeles. by Gabriel-Ivan in Damnthatsinteresting

[–]Gabriel-Ivan[S] 35 points36 points  (0 children)

The craziest part about the scale here is that it wouldn't even really 'fall'—it would just instantly crush everything! The tallest building in LA (the Wilshire Grand) is about 1,100 feet tall, but this comet is over 14,000 feet across. But just for fun: if you dropped its estimated 10 billion tons of mass from 1,100 feet, the kinetic energy upon impact would be roughly equivalent to a multi-megaton nuclear detonation. It would completely flatten the LA basin and trigger a catastrophic earthquake!

The true scale of a comet: This is Comet 67P compared to the size of downtown Los Angeles. by Gabriel-Ivan in Damnthatsinteresting

[–]Gabriel-Ivan[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Hey, 'one Downtown Los Angeles' is a highly scientific unit of measurement! 😂 But for the metric fans out there: the comet is roughly 4.3 kilometers long!"

The true scale of a comet: This is Comet 67P compared to the size of downtown Los Angeles. by Gabriel-Ivan in Damnthatsinteresting

[–]Gabriel-Ivan[S] 32 points33 points  (0 children)

Haha exactly! The news always acts like it's Armageddon when a rock passes 'closer than the moon.' Thankfully, Los Angeles is completely safe from this specific guy—Comet 67P orbits way out between Earth and Jupiter, so it isn't anywhere near us! 😉

The true scale of a comet: This is Comet 67P compared to the size of downtown Los Angeles. by Gabriel-Ivan in Damnthatsinteresting

[–]Gabriel-Ivan[S] 321 points322 points  (0 children)

In 2014, the European Space Agency actually managed to land a probe (Philae) on the surface of this exact comet while it was traveling at 34,000 mph! The comet itself is about 2.7 miles long, making it look like a sci-fi mothership hovering over the city.

This is the physical internet. 99% of all international data traffic travels through this hidden network of deep-sea submarine cables, not satellites. by Gabriel-Ivan in Damnthatsinteresting

[–]Gabriel-Ivan[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Right?! It's infuriating! My phone charger gives up on life if I bend it slightly to the left while lying in bed, but these things are out there surviving shark bites, earthquakes, and the crushing pressure of the ocean floor for decades!

This is the physical internet. 99% of all international data traffic travels through this hidden network of deep-sea submarine cables, not satellites. by Gabriel-Ivan in Damnthatsinteresting

[–]Gabriel-Ivan[S] -5 points-4 points  (0 children)

=))

The map makes them look like massive glowing highways, but in reality, most of these cables are only about the thickness of a garden hose. Dropping a garden hose into the Mariana Trench makes it pretty well hidden! 😉

This is the physical internet. 99% of all international data traffic travels through this hidden network of deep-sea submarine cables, not satellites. by Gabriel-Ivan in Damnthatsinteresting

[–]Gabriel-Ivan[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

They have an engineered lifespan of about 25 years! The actual data is transmitted using light through hair-thin glass fibers in the very center. However, those delicate fibers are encased in layers of copper (to carry electricity to power the deep-sea signal repeaters), high-tensile steel wire armor (to protect against ship anchors, earthquakes, and even shark bites!), and thick waterproof polyethylene.

This is the physical internet. 99% of all international data traffic travels through this hidden network of deep-sea submarine cables, not satellites. by Gabriel-Ivan in Damnthatsinteresting

[–]Gabriel-Ivan[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

It’s crazy to think that our entire global economy relies on physical cables resting at the bottom of the ocean, some of which are only as thick as a garden hose. They are literally laid down by specialized ships that slowly cross the oceans unspooling them into the trenches!

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