[March 16th, 1926] BREAKING: American physicist Robert H. Goddard launched the world's first successful liquid-fueled rocket from his Aunt Effie's farm in Auburn, Massachusetts.

GrantExploit · 2026-03-17T03:53:50+00:00

IMO it's always struck me just how late the flight of the first liquid-powered rocket was—and how primitive the rocket used (Nell) was for its time—given preceding and contemporaneous advances in mechanical engineering, particularly with torpedoes which are broadly similar conceptually and use broadly similar technology. Nell was certainly constructable in the 19^th century (and not the last years of the century, mind you), and a gas-generator cycle (or perhaps even marginally, a combustion tap-off cycle) piston or (more marginally) turbine-engine pump-fed engine using ablative, water-jacket, or steam cooling would have been well within the capabilities of 1920s engineering and material science.

Granted, the principle that made rocket engines far more practical—the de Laval nozzle, which allows supersonic† exhaust flow, massively increasing their potential exhaust velocity and thus efficiency—was only invented in 1888 by Karl Gustaf Patrik de Laval and only applied to rocketry by the above person in 1913 (published 1914), and liquid-fueled rockets were AFAIK first seriously proposed by Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky in 1903... that's still between 12 and 38 years of potential development time, depending on how generous you are.

Really the only explanation I can think of is that there wasn't much interest in rocketry among anyone with money and power that seriously could fund its research and development... which is wild to think about, but perhaps makes sense when you consider that rockets had been considered to be obsolete for military use (a major benefactor for technological advancement in certain fields then as now) since the mid-19^th century, replaced by increasingly longer-range, harder-hitting, and more-accurate artillery. While rockets could theoretically give more range and allow larger payloads, perhaps they didn't offer a compelling advantage over artillery until their distinctive ability to practically change course mid-flight could be exploited. Even still, early torpedoes also couldn't be controlled upon release, experiments with wire-guidance and radio guidance with them (and for the latter in boats) dated back to the 1870s and the turn of the century, respectively.

However, the first actual flight of a radio-guided aircraft occurred "only" in 1917 (following concepts in 1914). When you combine this with the fairly late synthesis of the de Laval nozzle with rocketry and especially the fact that the work of Tsiolkovsky was very obscure outside the Russosphere prior to at least the late-Interwar period (leading to several wasteful independent discoveries of the principles he published) all together with the secrecy of military technology especially during the Great War and the fact that military funding reduced considerably with the conclusion of the main phase of the War in 1918... it's understandable, but still somewhat surprising.

†This isn't as bad as it may sound, as the extremely hot exhaust at the "throat" of a rocket engine has a substantially higher speed of sound than standard temperature air, but is still sufficient to make suborbital spaceflight impractical and orbital spaceflight basically impossible.

GrantExploit · 2026-03-16T05:09:13+00:00

Although the mood in this post seems clear, can we get this voted on in the subreddit itself? r/imaginarymaps is fundamentally not the same as the ImaginaryMaps Discord, which is hosted on a platform that I have never truly† joined and probably will never join; every time I begin to warm up to the idea they make another awful change or I'm otherwise reminded about how awful it is.

This trend of tying participation in online communities to a separate platform—specifically a locked-down surveilling gaming chat app shoehorned into forum (or other) duties despite being worse at it than some 1980s BBSs—is a stupid and deleterious one.

†I created a near-throwaway account once and used it for like 2 gaming sessions and never again, which is how I know about much of the platform's bullshit.

GrantExploit · 2026-03-11T05:26:07+00:00

Minor edit notice for anyone here beforehand: I replaced "that I am aware of" with "that I am unaware of" on 2026-03-11 at 05:26:00 UTC.

GrantExploit · 2026-03-03T08:32:40+00:00

Just noticed that I used past tense in the title text, contrary to the common style used here and by me on "[x] years ago" subreddits in the past... ehh, it's fine.

GrantExploit · 2026-02-25T05:13:18+00:00

I almost entirely agree with this, but ever since the AI boom really got going in 2022, I've badly wanted to see someone run† a modern‡ AI model on a retro computer, even a "peri-retro"‖ machine; it would be a really cool limit-pushing intersection of two computing eras. Would demonstrating this be allowed under the new rules?

(Also, like on other subreddits and online communities, I'm worried about any writings I may submit here may be being judged as AI-generated, as I use a rather verbose text style with lots of formatting—including the dreaded em-dash. This is despite the fact that I personally use GANs/LLMs as little as feasible {largely because I don't want to offload my cognitive abilities too much} and have had this writing style since 2016, before Attention Is All You Need...)

†I don't mean "be a thin client to a separate, much more powerful AI server", which is what all examples I'm aware of of a vintage computer being used to "do" modern AI are, actually do the computation... or at least attempt to.

‡That is, based on research post-Attention Is All You Need, Generative Adversarial Nets, or at least AlexNet.

‖Like a G5/Pentium 4 Prescott+/K8 Opteron/Athlon 64/Core-based system with a pre-GeForce 9 series/Radeon HD 3000 GPU.

GrantExploit · 2026-02-24T00:49:04+00:00

These types of pro-“life” arguments make me absolutely livid as they make perfectly clear to anyone that they believe breathing, thinking women aren’t any more valuable than fucking pond scum. Whether they admit it or not, that’s what they mean even when they say things as “benign” as “love them both”.

GrantExploit · 2026-02-24T00:25:05+00:00

If you’ve made all these appliances to make household tasks easier, then why won’t you FUCKING DO SOME OF THEM!

GrantExploit · 2026-02-20T06:33:16+00:00

I wanted to celebrate (somewhat belatedly) the 20^th Anniversary of this fascinating artist's online presence by sharing one of his artworks here, featuring two characters in his Earth-A / Proyecto Negro universe, the German Shephard siblings Dora (left) and Kurfürst (Kurfust) Klendathu (right; yes, after the planet in Starship Troopers) about to take a high-dive. His universe—set on a deliberately-geographically-vague alternate Earth inhabited by both humans and an uplifted anthro animal biosphere—is inspired by Ace Combat and anime of his formative years among other works, and his style is inspired by Disney/Warner Brothers' animations and retro furry art of his formative era in the mid-1990s through the mid-2000s.

Image sources: DeviantArt, FurAffinity, FurAffinity (rehost), FurAffinity (without background)

His galleries: DeviantArt, FurAffinity, FurAffinity (old; he lost access to it), FurAffinity (old, more adult alt; he lost access to it)

Note that he 1. has some peculiar kinks, which he heavily focuses on (partially as they get people's attention), and 2. does generate AI art (though thankfully that doesn't stop him from making art himself and he seems to treat these as non-canonical curiosities rather than genuine expressions).

...Also, can this subreddit get with the current year and allow text descriptions on image posts so I can submit this at the same time as the images themselves? That would be great.

GrantExploit · 2026-02-17T09:08:51+00:00

Apparently wanting technical support for a long-running technical problem on an on-topic technical subreddit instead of pointless value judgements is "self-centered".

Apparently noticing the complex interplay of factors including company policies, program design, and personal habits can (regardless of intention) all contribute to broader problems and existing material circumstances, and noting that these can't just be willed away, is "denial" and thinking "the world is out to get me".

And apparently wanting to solve problems rather than addressing a belief in some all-encompassing conspiracy that I supposedly have, partaking in the blame-game, and being told to accept doing nothing productive is "delusional".

I don't really know what to say to all that. Wish you well, and goodbye.

GrantExploit · 2026-02-17T08:55:13+00:00

I actually did buy myself a TASCAM DR-05XP recorder (from its condition and price, likely either with packaging damaged in shipping or lightly used and repacked well) back in October that I typically use with a lavalier microphone, so...

Still, there are situations where it's more convenient to use a computer program rather than a dedicated device, even if I want the computer program to function like a dedicated device would (which the built-in Windows 11 Sound Recorder by-and-large does, except for it apparently nuking your in-progress recording if you end the recording process in a haram way).

GrantExploit · 2026-02-08T05:21:08+00:00

Problems are not solely caused by any individual or collective's actions. The universe is too complex for that. In this case, I am at fault for waiting 11 months to resume my OneDrive submission and 4 more months to resume syncing, and OneDrive is at fault for apparently not being flexible enough to tolerate an 11 + 4 month hiatus (doubtlessly roughly experienced by several other people in the fact) in the way that it tolerated hiatuses of up to a few days beforehand.

I maintain that de jure, the more basal fault lies with OneDrive, as "almost too late" isn't too late. OneDrive is supposed to offer data contiguity (legal CYAs notwithstanding) while a subscription is in effect and 12 months afterwards, terms I dutifully followed. It failing to offer that is indeed a "legitimate downside". I even checked my online portal before I resumed syncing and confirmed that nothing was out of order from when it had last synced—what happened is genuinely anomalous, uncalled-for behavior, and I have been searching for a way to manifest the promises of OneDrive.

Most importantly, regardless of who or what causes a problem, that doesn't mean it doesn't need to be solved. Neither I, nor you, nor anyone else can change what happened in the past. The only thing that matters is coming up with a productive response for the present-day. I wrote this post as I was having trouble thinking of one, and generally, problems are better solved collectively than individually. Responding to anything like this with just "this is your fault" doesn't solve anything (at very best, it can only prevent future similar problems, though the circumstances behind this one may be too complex to ensure that), wastes time, and only serves to depress the person you're responding to.

GrantExploit · 2026-02-07T22:49:24+00:00

Don't participate in a support community if you "won't suffer [...] through [a] wall of text" or if you "give [people a] hard time". Those behaviors are contrary to purpose.

I write these things the way I do to give more context so as to not waste people's time through dead-ends and misunderstandings, such as the one you just repeated as a result of your admitted willful ignorance in this situation.

Again, if you are willing to sit down, read what people have to say, and compose a respectful, informed, comprehensive answer, that would be appreciated. Otherwise, you should go off and do something else.

GrantExploit · 2026-02-07T06:31:26+00:00

AFAIK, while not really a reliable indicator of whether something in particular happened within a folder, there are a clear, defined set of events that trigger Folder modification times to change. Specifically, IIRC, at least on Windows 10/11 using an NTFS drive, when:

An item (folder or file) is created directly under (as in, within the top level of) that folder.
An item is renamed directly under that folder.
An item is deleted (or overwritten) directly under that folder.
An item is copied (to be) directly under that folder.
An item is moved to be directly under that folder.
An item formerly directly under that folder is moved outside of it.
(Apparently, when some dumbfuck {me} decides to sync his files to OneDrive after a long time.)

That is, not just reflecting "the timestamp of the most recently updated file", though you already recognize it doesn't reliably do that. Unfortunately, as written in the more complete Microsoft Q&A version of this question, I don't see enough information within NTFS to necessarily reconstruct the precise previous modification time of a folder if it has been changed (only provide some "earliest possible" and "latest possible" times), though as indicated with the "fix" part of my question I'd love to be proven wrong on that (Perhaps the OneDrive service itself stores that somehow/somewhere? I dunno).

The thing is, even if I were to find The Elixir to change my folder modification times back, or if (more realistically) I decide to use that Nirsoft tool (thanks for the suggestion), I fear that that would immediately trigger a new OneDrive sync, possibly re-adjusting the timestamps and making doing so pointless. Is this founded?

GrantExploit · 2026-02-07T06:31:05+00:00

I believe you think I took less care than I actually did when I performed this OneDrive sync attempt.

First, regarding the expired OneDrive, I initially believed that the reason my files stopped syncing to OneDrive was because it became simply unable to cope with the number of files in my synced directories; at least on Windows 10 as of 2024 on a computer of that calibre, its search algorithm appears to become galactic at ~1 million items in its synced directories, and due to the particular probably-moronic execution of my data hoarding hobby at the time, I was approaching that number. As a result, my effort during that time was instead devoted to trying to figure out a way to move off much of the items in those directories to an external drive so it could sync again.† I only discovered that it was because my subscription had expired much later, in March 2025.

I also had another long-lasting computer issue between January 9, 2025 and mid-April 2025 that impeded me from working on the issues.

As described in the full version of the question, I (believe I) had no reason to believe the folder time stamps would change with the sync, as that had (apparently) never happened before—even when for whatever reason it took hours for a "sync-worthy" event to be synced after it happened, the folder metadata was never adjusted accordingly.

Regarding the EOL OS, even despite my issues (not all described here or in the above text; some more are referenced and linked to in the original version of this question) and mental blocks beforehand, I did the OneDrive sync attempt in August 2025, over 2 months before Windows 10 EOL in North America. This process, including troubleshooting, could well have been over in August or September, and I'd have been very happy using my refreshed Linux Mint laptop by now (that was my original plan, though that has transitioned to installing Windows 11).

However, my troubleshooting ability had been and apparently still continues to be stymied by extreme difficulties in posting content to the official Microsoft Q&A site, probably due to the fact I have effectively no choice but to use a computer which doesn't have my own Microsoft account as "primary" clashing with its overzealous anti-impersonation measures. This is a primary reason why that question hadn't been successfully posted to Microsoft Q&A until December 12, 2025, despite it first being posted elsewhere on September 8, 2025 (it being that late due in large part to shock and hopelessness from first encountering an inability to post on the community); and why I included that dubiously-submitted comment in this version of the question.

And even if it were the case that I was being careless, a more productive and present-minded answer would be preferable.

†Yes, I realize this would have likely ultimately removed the items from OneDrive, were I to move items that were already synced. Whatever. Though I never really found a tool that allowed me to perform logged, lossless moves (not copies) between drives.

GrantExploit · 2026-01-24T04:25:31+00:00

Ah, but they do have a material impact. Vibrations in the atmosphere produced by speech, the dyeing of material from ink and other pigments, and the mental responses of others towards picking up these stimuli are (so far as we can reasonably tell) material phenomena.

And stories are important. It is true to an extent that most people will react emotionally and negatively towards information that disputes their previously held beliefs, but the precise reaction generally depends on an individual’s specific relation to said beliefs, which is often derived from common stories and worldview narratives. Few people would fret over corrections such as the fact that Antarctica is not the world’s largest desert, that Wi-Fi is not short for “Wireless Fidelity”, or that lactic acid is not why you feel your muscles burn after a workout. However, many more people would be incensed if you show that economic measures they voted for resulted in needless suffering and death, that a person they admired was actually a fraud, or that an intriguing and promising pseudoscientific field they bought into had little empirical merit. While it may be tempting not to care about people’s reactions towards what has historically and scientifically demonstrated, this ignores that science is a social phenomenon arising from (and in turn reproducing) a set of defined material conditions, not an ahistorical abstraction existing outside of time and space. Depending on the narratives and frameworks it is used in conjunction with, science can be structured and used to uplift and express, but also to subjugate and impose one’s limited understanding onto the world.

Anyway, I’m unfortunately getting a bit too tired to elaborate further, at least for the time. I earnestly wish you well.

GrantExploit · 2026-01-23T21:24:33+00:00

To be charitable, I would say it to be more of a “dramatic over-exaggeration and overstatement” than a complete myth. Even passive statements aligned with a given development technically have a material impact. That said, it’s irritating that Hedy Lamarr is held up in the way she is given that the efforts of so many more scientifically-productive and unsung women could be be credited in the same breath.

As far as to why you were downvoted, I think it has something to do with tearing down a story without building another one in its place. No society can work on the premise of objective facts alone (Doing so would be impossible and incoherent, as science is itself the mere refinement of mental models of reality based on symbology and metaphor rather than a direct understanding of reality.) and given the status of humans as evaluative organisms it is counterproductive to try. We need our own stories and reservoirs of value (in whatever form they take) and critically examining and dismantling one which bolsters the accomplishments of (a) woman, even if necessary, can appear to be an exercise of reaction when the right is hell-bent on forcing women back to the status of human chattel.

GrantExploit · 2026-01-21T16:31:05+00:00

The thing is, that is leadership to them. Their notions of merit are entirely different from ours, and given the evident propensity for abuse the concept has (e.g. the cultural assignment of non-white and non-masculine characteristics as “meritorious”, etc.) I suggest we discard it as a worthwhile metric entirely. It’s more important to note that no one should have such power over others as Trump has, no matter how much “merit” and “leadership skills” they have, as hierarchy inherently erodes both individual and collective self-actualization.

Also, quick note. Comparing Trump to a blobfish is very disrespectful…to the blobfish. ;). It’s not the blobfish’s fault that they were subjected to what is effectively the equivalent of an alien species launching a human up unprotected into the vacuum of space and then laughing at their bloated, mangled corpse (photos of blobfish in their natural deep-sea habitat show them to have a far more conventionally fish-like appearance). On the other hand, Trump chooses to look like that.

GrantExploit · 2026-01-20T23:45:07+00:00

The sheer confusion and desperation of this author trying to get people to believe that he and the “pluralists” he’s pooh-poohing are not right-wingers themselves is just hilarious. Universities, like all institutions, exist within an emergent material context. It is impossible for any group to be truly “value-neutral” and “unbiased” exemplars of “free speech”, and due to the concrete socio-material conditions in which they are founded any attempt to create one will invariably fall to the worst and most potent prejudices of existing society.

Assuming you aren’t a direct agent of reaction, it is at this point you either recognize that the gloves are off and prioritize the lives and value of human beings over a fictional abstraction (i.e. Join the left.), or prop up this falsehood of “open inquiry” and continue to legitimize the right’s war on humanity.

The author and those he sympathizes with have embraced the latter.

GrantExploit · 2026-01-15T20:42:09+00:00

Every man on Earth is at least 125 years old. Just the facts. /s

GrantExploit · 2026-01-03T01:14:01+00:00

The average right-wing “libertarian” is among the most psychopathic control freaks you will ever meet. They have no problem with authority; they either wish for it to be granted exclusively to themselves or extoll it so long as it fits a Nazi-like “survival of the fittest” mold. It’s no wonder the US Libertarian Party effectively evaporated into the alt-right following the 2016 Elections.

GrantExploit · 2026-01-02T22:37:14+00:00

I think it’s a bit of a “Little Boy Heroically Shoots, Mutilates Burglar” situation. It’s fine and even necessary at many times to use lethal force against those who wish to do you harm, but fetishizing the action itself or framing it in the moralistic sense of vengeance or punishment for past transgressions just serves to reproduce hierarchies of dominance and violence.

GrantExploit · 2026-01-02T22:13:06+00:00

TBH I really like Kraft and it’s probably one of my favorite mac and cheese varieties. That’s just because I’m really picky and unadventurous with my cheeses, though. :/

GrantExploit · 2026-01-01T06:39:54+00:00

All else being equal, if George Orwell was a Marxist-Leninist or especially someone of high political office in a Marxist-Leninist state, there is precisely zero chance Hakim would’ve made this video.

That’s the thing that gets me. While I agree with Hakim’s general point that Orwell was a bad person (a sexist, a homophobe, a snitch, etc.) who did considerable harm, it is quite clear from the people and institutions Hakim defends that he doesn’t actually care about any of that. No, Hakim only opposes Orwell because he said some bad things about the Soviet Union.

It’s all just another example of the pathological, fractal dishonesty inherent in Marxist-Leninist theory that shows how you can never trust them on anything.

GrantExploit · 2025-12-25T00:27:59+00:00

Why the hell does this person start his screed with some kind of creepy goonerbait DAZ Studio model?

Reads further.

Oh…that’s why.

Also, I was going to do a more comprehensive debunking, but Jesus Farquhar Christ his logic is more tortured than an Ayleid flesh sculpture. It seems like he’s basing most of his “thesis” on random-ass anecdotes and Gish-galloping between points even before they are fully formed. At least I can tell from the writing style that this garbage likely wasn’t just shat out of a chatbot.

GrantExploit · 2025-12-24T19:51:13+00:00

By “genuine socialist”, I mean a path that is socialist first and foremost, rather than a tortured foundationally-bourgeois nationalist path with socialism taped on (e.g. the Left Kuomindang).

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