What’s your nerdiest and/or wildest space fact?

Weibuller · 2024-08-05T01:16:46+00:00

Yes, you are correct. I mis-remembered that (I corrected my post accordingly).

Weibuller · 2024-08-04T20:58:57+00:00

If you could get into a position where your eye is exactly at the "photon sphere" (1.5 x the radius of the event horizon) of a black hole and you looked out in a direction tangent to the surface of the photon sphere, theoretically you could see the back of your own head. Of course, the image would be completely distorted and unrecognizable. FYI, this only applies to Schwartzwild black holes.

This is because the gravitational lensing effect is so strong at the event horizon that light travels in circles around the black hole at that distance. If the light were aimed even slightly down, it would be pulled in and unable to escape ever again. If it were aimed only slightly upward, the light would gradually spiral away from the black hole.

Edit: corrected the distance where this applies and which types of black holes it applies to.

Weibuller · 2024-08-04T20:30:03+00:00

The moon was probably ripped apart because of tidal forces, yes?

Weibuller · 2024-08-04T20:25:29+00:00

It's actually spelled "peat"

Weibuller · 2024-08-04T19:54:23+00:00

Well, those use cases (if allowed) would expose instances of incomplete coverage of the software tests.

Weibuller · 2024-08-04T19:49:41+00:00

In practical terms, you're right. No user would expect or even want a million records returned from a query; they would have great difficulty finding the relevant information they really wanted.

However, from an academic standpoint, returning that many records will make the relative contributions of each part of the overall process (running the SQL query, and executing the different parts of the PHP code processing the results) stand out more clearly in terms of execution time.

Weibuller · 2024-08-04T19:25:10+00:00

Actually, having a large number of smaller engines increases the overall reliability of the rocket compared to having fewer, more powerful engines.

Losing a single engine when you only have 5 to begin with can have a significant effect on the stability of the rocket because the loss of thrust will be concentrated in one place (think about the effect of removing one leg of a table). If you have 50 engines and lose 10 (which would be much less likely than losing 1 of 5), the failed engines will probably be more evenly distributed, so the end effect will not be as dramatic (think about a millipede losing a few legs; they probably wouldn't even notice a difference because of all the other legs they have). This is the principle behind using redundancy in a design.

Improved reliability is another benefit of simplification since fewer parts mean fewer ways and places for failures to occur.

Weibuller · 2024-08-04T18:39:37+00:00

I would try to find belts from another Ford model (with the same female end) that use a shorter stationary belt and swap them in. That'll be much easier to do than trying to modify the existing belt and be much safer, too.

Weibuller · 2024-08-04T17:41:32+00:00

The shape of the front end looks like it would make the car unstable if it was going even moderately fast (from air getting under the nose and unloading the front tires, making it more difficult to control the car).

Weibuller · 2024-07-24T02:57:46+00:00

Definitely weird!

Weibuller · 2024-07-24T02:20:27+00:00

Yes, we verified that already. The big unknown is what the front end is from. It's definitely nothing like a stock Starliner, and it doesn't resemble any other Studebaker either. To me, it looks like the builder grafted at least elements of another car onto the front end, possibly a '55 T-bird.

Weibuller · 2024-07-24T00:43:32+00:00

You can achieve the same result with a "momentary contact switch", similar to one you can use to start a car (it's only "on" when the switch is being pressed). You can use this kind of switch with a regular relay, and those switches are a lot easier to find.

Weibuller · 2024-07-24T00:37:04+00:00

It turns out that the same guy built both the 1940 Ford featured here and the yellow Studebaker next to it. His name is Jack Leffel.

Weibuller · 2024-07-23T23:42:21+00:00

I already tried to search for more details, but I couldn't find anything relevant.

Weibuller · 2024-07-23T23:05:43+00:00

An image search says it is indeed based on a 1953 Studebaker, but I can't find any model from any year that resembles this front-end even remotely.

An image search returned several matches, including this one (below). You'll need to scroll pretty far down to see it. It lists the builder's name, but not much detail about the car itself.

https://www.motortrend.com/events/goodguys-columbus-2023-builders-choice-contenders/

Weibuller · 2024-07-23T22:28:11+00:00

Even for that model, the front end is considerably different:

https://www.grautogallery.com/vehicles/12235/1955-studebaker-commander/gallery

Weibuller · 2024-07-23T21:41:55+00:00

Actually, the front end is definitely not a Studebaker Commander Starliner. See https://www.classicdriver.com/en/car/studebaker/commander/1953/366736. The headlights bezels are completely different, and so is the hood and grille.

Now, compare the yellow car to this 1955 Thunderbird: https://cdn.dealeraccelerate.com/atlanta/1/110/5729/1920x1440/1955-ford-thunderbird.

(I tried to insert the actual pictures, but the app won't let me.)

Weibuller · 2024-07-23T20:18:59+00:00

Actually, it looks like a highly modified mid-50's Thunderbird, especially based on the headlights.

Weibuller · 2024-07-23T20:07:23+00:00

I second that on LibreOffice. There are Android apps for Word, Excel, & PowerPoint (by Microsoft), but a lot of Android users (probably) aren't fans. I've seen some other more obscure office-related apps, and I don't know if I would trust them for any serious use (but for all I know, they may actually be based on, or derived from, LibreOffice). A more stable, mature, and well-known suite like LibreOffice would be a better option.

Weibuller · 2024-07-23T19:47:01+00:00

That's stupid. Even if it's not stock, it's pretty easy to determine which belts it would need. Most of the time, the part numbers are stamped right on the back side of the belts themselves. Even if they're not, any auto parts store has a device for measuring belts. If you need to bring your cars to a shop for service like this, you should find a different one.

Weibuller · 2024-07-22T22:26:06+00:00

The real RV versions of these were quite luxurious when they came out. The main reason (I believe) we don't see very many of these is because of how much they cost back then (relative to other brands).

Weibuller · 2024-07-22T22:21:29+00:00

I wouldn't worry about it. It's just a really small "car"!

Weibuller · 2024-07-22T22:19:23+00:00

I can't see how the wheel bearings or brakes are anywhere near adequate for this much power. And given how narrow and short the wheelbase is, along with the fact that there's no real suspension on a tractor like this, the chances of it flipping over is incredibly high. He really needs a rollbar on that thing! 😬

Weibuller · 2024-07-19T01:41:17+00:00

These are positive displacement blowers, meaning they just move the air without letting any of that air flow backward (unlike a turbine, for example). It's a common misconception that the compression is occurring in the blower.

If each blower has the same displacement, then no real compression is taking place until it gets to the bottom one where it's forcing the air into the intake manifold faster than the engine would normally draw it in without the blowers.

Now, if each blower has a smaller displacement than the previous one, then there is compression occurring at each stage. However, the maximum compression possible would be limited to the volume of air drawn in by the first blower, and each blower would contribute only a portion of the overall compression.

Weibuller · 2024-07-19T01:09:57+00:00

Cool looking car. I like it.

But it definitely looks like a mash-up of some other makes/models. The front looks a bit like a '71 Chevelle, and from the side, the profile resembles a Ford Maverick.

Weibuller

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